Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Bay sucks
by spiderhead
Summary: This is a screenplay that I wrote as a reaction to the 'alien Ninja Turtles/Michael Bay' fiasco. This script is faithful to the original subject matter and is what I would like to see in a TMNT reboot.


FADE IN:

EXT./INT. A WAREHOUSE. - NIGHT

**JAPAN.**

A rat wakes up from sleep, rubs his eyes and his fur before poking his head up to see what is going on outside of his cage. His cage is hanging from the ceiling in a dojo. The rat looks out at a group of ninjas who are sitting on the floor and listening to their master give a speech in Japanese. Their master is a short, but muscular ninja master named HAMATO YOSHI.

YOSHI

(subtitled)

**This is a time of great sadness for Japan. The treacherous way that our Emperor has abused the sacred position of commander of Japan's royal guard to his own evil ends.**

INT. A HOUSE. - NIGHT

A Japanese family of admittedly humble means sits down to have dinner. Suddenly, the door is kicked open and eight members of the Emperor's royal guard barge into the house with machine guns. The father gets up to see who has intruded on their home while the children, all of them pre-teens, are frightened.

LATER.

This family is outside of their home. The father, mother and children are tied together with thick rope.

GUARD #1

(subtitled)

**This will teach you to be late with the taxes that our Emperor has commanded!**

Another guard walks over to the family's home with a large torch, clearly intending to throw the torch into the home and burn it.

FATHER

(subtitled)

**NO! Please! Do not burn our home!**

GUARD #1

(subtitled)

**Be happy you are not still in there, peasant scum!**

The guard with the torch is suddenly shot in the arm by an arrow fired at him from above. He lets out a scream and drops the torch. It falls harmlessly to the cement walkway. All of the guards look up and see a team of six purple-clad masked ninjas perched on the family's roof with martial arts weapons. These ninjas, wearing an emblem on their chests that look like a dragon's foot, drop down from their perch.

GUARD #1

(subtitled)

**Who DARES defy the Emperor's royal guard!**

One ninja steps towards the guard and slowly draws his sword.

NINJA

(subtitled)

**The Foot!**

INT. A WAREHOUSE. - MOMENTS LATER

Hamato Yoshi continues his speech to the members of his clan as his pet rat watches intently from his cage, with a focus that one might not expect from a mere rodent.

YOSHI

(subtitled)

**We will be swift! We will be precise and we will be feared!**

The group of ninjas replies with a shout.

GROUP OF NINJAS

(subtitled)

**WE ARE THE FOOT!**

EXT. A HOUSE. - MOMENTS LATER

A Foot ninja unties the family that the Emperor's guard has been harassing. The father gets up and sees that the members of the Emperor's guard have been tied up and gagged by the other six ninjas. All except the leader of this troop, who falls dead after a Foot ninja pulls a sword out of his belly.

NINJA

(subtitled)

**Consider it seppaku!**

INT. A WAREHOUSE. - LATER

Yoshi's pet rat presses his paws against the side of his cage and watches the training session that is going on.

Hamato Yoshi is sparring with one of his fellow martial arts students, a man named OROKU SAKI, in front of their MASTER, a long, white-bearded martial arts teacher. The fight is fast and furious, as both are good fighters, but Saki's tendency to be impulsive caused Yoshi to get the upper hand in a number of circumstances and Yoshi would throw him to the ground, trip him or otherwise knock him down. When this would happen, Saki's temper would get the better of him and he would let out a grunt as he got back up and into the fight.

MASTER

(subtitled)

**Patience, Oroku!**

Saki let out a grunt as he attacked Yoshi again.

SAKI

(subtitled)

**I will SHRED you!**

Yoshi blocked his punches and flipped Saki over his shoulder. Yoshi leapt into the air, stomping on Saki's chest and the match was over.

MASTER

(subtitled)

**Enough! Yoshi is the victor!**

Saki gets up off the floor and brushes himself off.

SAKI

(subtitled)

**Yoshi is a dirty fighter, Master. **

MASTER

(subtitled)

**Saki, you must learn to calm yourself. Rage blinds you to the reality of your enemy.**

Saki's ego is clearly bruised. He hangs his head in shame and says nothing back to his sensei.

As the Master is leaving the room, a beautiful tall Chinese woman named TANG SHEN enters the dojo. She smiles at Hamato Yoshi with the look of a woman deeply in love. They embrace.

TANG SHEN

(subtitled)

**You are truly a tribute to the clan, my love. Your fighting drips of your passion.**

Yoshi kisses Shen.

YOSHI

(subtitled)

**And YOU are a tribute to passion.**

Yoshi kisses Shen again. Yoshi's pet rat watches Saki leave the room. Saki looks back at Yoshi and Shen with a look on his face that pulsated with jealousy. The rat reacted to Saki's anger as his ears went down sheepishly. Saki's fists tightened at his side.

EXT. NEW YORK CITY. - NIGHT

**NEW YORK CITY. FIFTEEN YEARS LATER.**

One relatively quiet New York City street is disturbed by the sound of police sirens. There is a manhole cover in the middle of this street.

INT. THE SEWERS - CONTINUOUS

The sewers are also quiet, disturbed occasionally by the sound of police sirens from above. One brick wall in the sewers, there is a small keypad that is used to open a secret hole in the wall electronically. This secret door leads to a sewer lair that is the home of five most unusual creatures. The door is now closed, as the night is quiet.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - CONTINUOUS

A human-sized, grey-haired rat named SPLINTER, wearing a tattered kimono, sits in the middle of this sewer lair meditating. He opens his eyes and looks at the clock on the wall. He sighs before grabbing a remote control turning on the television.

He watches the news on Channel 6, where a 28-year-old redhead named APRIL O'NEIL is standing in front of an electronics store.

APRIL

This is the sixth robbery in the past week in which absolutely no clues were left behind, leaving police baffled by the lack of fingerprints or any kind of evidence. If you have any information on any of these robberies, please call your local police or get in touch with us here at the station. This April O'Neil, Channel 6 news.

Splinter sighs again.

EXT./INT. SAKI SECURITY SYSTEMS BUILDING - NIGHT

Oroku Saki, fifteen years older, walks into a room full of businessmen wearing a very dapper-looking business suit. Each one of the businessmen was wearing a name tag that told Saki what business that they were representing. The three businessmen that were closest to Saki at this table represented Techno-Cosmic Research Industries and their badges read 'T.C.R.I.'.

Standing at the door is a scientist that works very closely with Saki. He is a forty-year old, moustached black man named BAXTER STOCKMAN. Each of the businessmen were sipping cups of coffee as Saki walked into the room.

SAKI

Welcome, my friends! I am honored that you have come to see what Saki Systems has to offer. I know that you will be impressed by the unique security options that you will find here. Now, the first thing I want to ask of each of you, is to take the coffee cup that you were given by Dr. Stockman and hold it up for me.

Saki holds up his coffee cup, but when the businessmen try to grab their coffee cups, their cups are gone. There is a bit of confusion as the businessmen look around for the cups that they had just placed on the table in front of them.

SAKI

(laughs)

Do not be alarmed, gentlemen! What you have just witnessed is a demonstration of the stealth that most security guards you can hire simply do not possess.

Suddenly, purple-clad, masked ninjas started dropping from the ceiling above these businessmen, holding the coffee cups that they had taken off the table. The ninjas handed the coffee cups back to the businessmen, some of whom were startled. Some laughed while others found this demonstration odd.

SAKI

Enemies who would infiltrate your networks to steal your secrets cannot defend themselves from a security guard that they cannot see. That is the advantage that my security team offers, the advantage of a 500-year old art of stealth.

The businessmen are now quiet, looking at Saki with rapt attention.

SAKI

So, as you can see, it is to your advantage to have my protection.

There was a slight noise from the window in this room. One of the businessmen pointed at someone who was on the ledge with a small camera. This shadowy, green and red figure hid when the businessman spotted him.

BUSINESSMAN #1

Is this part of your demonstration?

SAKI

No.

(smiles)

Just good timing.

The businessmen now realized that the ninjas who were standing in this room were now gone.

SAKI

Now, you can see my ninjas in action.

EXT. SAKI SECURITY SYSTEMS BUILDING - CONTINUOUS

Two armed non-ninja security guards patrol the front of the building, talking on the radio.

SECURITY GUARD #1

I don't see him out here, sir. We'll check out back.

Suddenly, a three-pronged knife called a sai flies out of nowhere and smashes a lamp over the heads of these two guards.

Blackness consumes the area and all that can he heard is the thumping and grunting sounds of a fight. More security guards show up and activate some emergency lights to illuminate this darkened area. They find the first two guards tied up and out cold.

SECURITY GUARD #2

He's definitely here, sir. We need reinforcements.

After the security guards run away, a manhole cover in this area slides to the side. A green, three-fingered hand reaches out from this manhole and takes back the sai that was thrown.

Three armed security guards run into an alley. More thumping and grunting is heard as a fight breaks out. Two of the guards are tied up and knocked out while a third is hanging upside down by a rope tied to his ankle. A human-sized turtle with a purple eye mask grabs the other end of the rope, attached to a fire escape on the building and lets himself down as the guard is hoisted up. This is DONATELLO. Donatello presses his foot up against the building, stopping himself so both he and the guard are hanging at the same height. Don pulls a bo staff that was strapped to his back and starts beating the hanging security guard in mid-air.

DONATELLO

Pinata time!

Don finally lets go so that the guard fell down hard and he himself handed on his feet with his bo staff in hand. The name **DONATELLO** appears on the screen.

Don turns to his left and sees ninjas dropping down to the ground from the upper floors and scattering into the surrounding shadows. He cups his ear, which has a small bluetooth device on it.

DONATELLO

Raph, Mikey, ninjas coming your way!

A red-masked human-sized turtle named RAPHAEL was perched in a tree. He dropped out of that tree and charged the first three ninjas that he saw with an ear-piercing roar. He hacked and slashed at them, blocking their weapons long enough to fell them with a roundhouse kick to the face as he continued to grunt angrily as he fought. More ninjas came at him, dropping out of trees and falling out the windows above, as Raphael just kept fighting them off until they were all knocked out cold at his feet and he stood over them, still tense with anger. The name **RAPHAEL** appears on the screen.

A non-ninja security guard walked up behind him. Raphael heard the click of the gun being cocked and looked behind him in enough time to lunge backwards, towards the gun. Two shots were fired and the bullets bounced off of the shell of this angry turtle before the shell hit the guard, knocking his gun away. Raphael responded with a roundhouse kick that felled this guard. Raphael picked up the gun that the guard had dropped and unloads it, popping the cartridge of bullets out.

RAPHAEL

You pull a gun on me? Come on! Fight like a turtle!

Raph angrily throws the gun to the ground.

More security guards ran around the corner with guns. They passed an awning on the building and as soon as they had passed, a third human-sized turtle, this one with an orange mask, dropped down from the inside of this awning, where he had been hiding. This is MICHELANGELO.

Mike looks behind him and sees ninjas that had dropped from the windows above. He reaches behind him and grabs a pair of nunchaku. The ninjas start hurling ninja stars his way and Mike skillfully deflects every single one of them with masterful twirling of his nunchaku. (This is a visual homage to the opening credits sequence of the 1987 TMNT cartoon show.)

MICHELANGELO

(laughs)

Missed me!

The name **MICHELANGELO** appears on the screen. Mikey jumps into the fray and starts fighting ninjas with his nunchaku spinning fervently.

One of these ninjas turns to look into the alley and sees a fourth turtle, one with a blue eye mask, stepping out of the shadows and the smoke from a ventilation duct. The word **LEONARDO **appears on the screen. The ninja steps forward to meet this turtle, pulling out a sword of his own.

FOOT NINJA

Ninja?

Leonardo pulls out his own sword.

LEONARDO

(smiles)

Turtle.

The ninja attacks Leo with his sword and the turtle matches the incredible skill of this Foot ninja blow for blow. They seem evenly matched as the fight rages on between the Foot ninjas and the other three turtles.

Meanwhile, Saki and his businessmen guests are watching the fight from the above window of their meeting room. Saki has alot of questions on his mind.

SAKI (V.O.)

What are these freaks? How do they know how to fight like this?

The fight between Leonardo and the Foot ninja ends when the Foot ninja takes a swipe at Leo's head, allowing him to pull his head into his shell. The swipe misses. Leonardo pulls his head out of his shell just enough to he could see and fell his attacker with a powerful kick to the face.

LEONARDO

God, I love being a turtle!

Leonardo pulls his head out of his shell and realizes that his three brothers are standing behind him.

RAPHAEL

Yeah, I'd like to be a bird right now. Get the shell out of here.

LEONARDO

Remember the plan, Raph! We're here to deliver a message.

RAPHAEL

I know. I know. Stop preaching, Leo!

Raphael touches the note attached to his belt.

MICHELANGELO

And that message is, prepare to get shell-shocked!

(laughs)

More ninjas show up and surround the ninja turtles. The turtles get into their fighting positions, pressing their shells against one another and standing back to back (in a visual homage to the very first splash page of the very first TMNT comic book in 1984.)

**TEENAGE MUTANT NINJA TURTLES.**

LEONARDO

Raph, you get back to the high ground. The rest of you, cover him.

MICHELANGELO

Blue 42! Blue 42! Hut! Hut!

Raphael runs for the tree that he had been perched in before and the brawl continues between the Foot and the Turtles.

One ninja pulls out a long metal chain and thrusts it at Leonardo. Leonardo responds with a thrust of his sword that made that chain a few links shorter. The ninja thrust out that chain again and again and Leo responded the same, making that chain smaller and smaller. Leonardo got closer and closer to the ninja and finally, the ninja's chain was reduced to only a few links that he couldn't hit anything with. Leo presses his katana (sword) up to the ninja's neck.

LEONARDO

(smiles)

Nice try.

Leo knocks this ninja out with a head butt. Mike comes over to the fallen ninja and sees the three-link chain that had fallen out of his hand.

MICHELANGELO

Hey, Leo! This guy found the missing link!

Mikey laughs. Leo rolls his eyes.

Raphael is in a tree, looking at the office window from which Saki and his business guests are watching the fight. Raphael attaches the note to one of his sais and throws it.

The sai with the note attached smashes the window and sticks into the wall behind Saki and his business associates. They react as Saki walks over to the note.

BUSINESSMAN #2

Mr. Oroku. I think this demonstration has shown us that you cannot keep even your own facility secure with this 'ancient art of stealth'.

BUSINESSMAN #3

Outrageous!

Saki reads the note, which reads _'Oroku Saki. Fifteen years ago, you dishonored yourself and your clan through the brutal murder of my master Hamato Yoshi. My four disciples challenge you to a fight to the death, that you may regain that honor.'_

Saki crinkles up the note in his enraged palm as the businessmen all leave, passing Dr. Stockman on the way out. Baxter doesn't know what to say and shrugs.

Saki scowls, walks over to the window and looks outside again. The outside of his facility is littered with the fallen bodies of all the security guards and ninjas that the turtles beat up, but the turtles themselves are gone.

Police sirens are heard. Saki watches a manhole cover move into place. He looks down at the note in his palm.

Saki walks over to a glass case that exists in the middle of this conference room. It contains a metallic battle helmet and a pair of sharp arm gauntlets.

INT. THE SEWERS - LATER

The four turtles trudge through these sewer tunnels on their way back home.

LEONARDO

Our mission is completed. Our master's master will soon be avenged.

RAPHAEL

(rolls eyes)

Thank you, Mr. Miyagi.

Leo shoots Raph a 'look'.

Donatello is holding the disposable camera that Raphael had been using to take spy photos on the ledge.

DONATELLO

Let's hope these pictures Raph took can give us some kind of edge.

MICHELANGELO

I'm starving. I hope Master Splinter lets us eat before we train some more.

RAPHAEL

Hey, you guys see my throw? I scored the winning touchdown!

DONATELLO

Turtle Tebow!

Mikey and Don laugh as they high-five each other and continue walking.

EXT. SAKI SECURITY SYSTEMS BUILDING - MOMENTS LATER

Police cars pull up to the facility and a cop gets out of the car. He is in his 30's, tall, dark and handsome. His name is DETECTIVE KEVIN LAIRD.

Police officers are collecting evidence from the scene, taking fingerprints and putting things into plastic bags to mark as evidence. One police officer has the gun that Raphael unloaded and the two bullets that deflected off of his shell.

Detective Laird talked to Oroku Saki.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

So, you have no security cameras around this entire facility? No way we can identify your intruders?

SAKI

This facility is protected by the art of ninjitsu. Invisibility is essential for our brand of security.

Kevin looks around at all of the ninjas that have fallen in this yard, some of which are being taken away by ambulance workers.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Yeah.

(pause)

I'd say its time for an upgrade.

Saki seems angry.

A news van pulls up for 'Channel 6 News'. Kevin takes notice when April O'Neil steps out, as she is an old friend. A cameraman also steps out and gets his camera ready, attaching wires and turning on monitors.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

April. Fancy meeting you here.

APRIL

Hey, Kevin! Are you the officer in charge of this investigation?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

(smiles)

I am.

APRIL

Any chance we can get a statement for the seven o'clock news?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Only if you promise to interview me personally.

Kevin smiles flirtatiously. April gestures for her cameraman to come forward.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

I was sorry to hear that May Williams got the anchor job at Channel 6 last month. You were clearly the better candidate.

APRIL

It's okay, really. She's a back-biting snake, but I didn't really want the job.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

You're a hard worker.

APRIL

Which is why I'd rather be in the trenches.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - MOMENTS LATER

Splinter is watching the news. April interviews Detective Laird about the events of this evening.

APRIL

While the proprietor of this security business, Mr. Saki, has declined to comment, I have here Detective Kevin Laird of the NYPD who has agreed to be interviewed.

(turns to Kevin)

Detective, the participants in this brawl were reported to be skilled in the martial arts. Do you believe that this incident is in any way connected to the mysterious robberies that have been happening throughout New York?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

We have not ruled out the possibility, but we will not move forward with that conclusion unless we can do so in harmony with the facts.

APRIL

Adding to the bizarre nature of this incident, were reports from at least two security guards here at Saki's that the intruders were dressed in full length turtle costumes.

Splinter reacts to this news and buries his snout in his hands.

SPLINTER

(groans)

Kids!

APRIL

More on that as it develops.

EXT. A BAR. - NIGHT

A large warehouse that has been converted into a bar. Heavy metal music blasts out of this bar, the parking lot of which is filled with motorcycles.

INT. A BAR. - CONTINUOUS

This bar room has a steel cage in the middle of it. Two men are inside the cage fighting while the drunks that surround the cage cheer them on. One of these amateur boxers is CASEY JONES. He is fighting with a shorter, muscular man with a full beard.

Casey dodges a few of his opponent's blows before connecting a few of his own. The bearded man staggers back.

CASEY

Awesome!

The bearded man comes back and continues the fight. Casey blocks a few of his opponents blows before knocking him back again with an uppercut.

CASEY

Excellent!

The fight continues and every time Casey knocks his opponent backwards, he responds with an expression of his jubilation.

CASEY

Wickeeeeeed!

Finally, Casey pins his opponent against the cage and starts pummeling him. The opponent falls to the canvas out cold, the bell rings and Casey raises both of his hands to the cheering of over a hundred drunks. The referee comes into the ring and declares him the winner.

REFEREE

Winner! And still King of the Cage! Caseyyyyy Jones!

CASEY

Bodacious!

A few drunks look at each other and nod at Casey's curious use of 80's surfer slang.

EXT. /INT. CASEY'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - LATER

Casey Jones walks up a flight of stairs, counting a pile of money that he won during his amateur boxing match. He knocks on a door and when his landlord opens it, Casey is holding up his pile of money.

CASEY

Three months back rent for you, Mr. Mooney. Thank you for your patience.

Mr. Mooney takes the money and counts it.

MR. MOONEY

You been up there making all that racket?

CASEY

No, I've been out all day, doing a few jobs.

MR. MOONEY

Well, I heard something. Sounded like you were sparring up there.

Casey gets worried. He lives with his grandmother and knows that she would not be making alot of noise. He darts up the stairs to his apartment. He notices that the door has been forced open and the locks were broken.

CASEY

Mr. Mooney! Call the cops! Someone broke in!

Mr. Mooney goes back inside so he can get help.

CASEY

Grandma?

Casey opens the door to his apartment and sees that the place is trashed. Things are either missing or broken.

CASEY

Grandma? Grandma?

Casey runs through the rest of the apartment and finds his grandmother hiding in the closet with a rolling pin in her hand. She looks up at Casey, terrified. Casey helps his grandmother up and puts her in a chair where she can relax.

Casey looks out his window and sees two young hoodlums running through an alley with stolen goods.

CASEY

Not today, punks!

Casey goes into his closet and takes a baseball bat that the goons didn't steal for some reason and pulls a hockey mask out of a box. He storms out of the apartment, donning the hockey mask.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - LATER

Splinter continues to watch the news. One of the security guards were being interviewed by April.

SECURITY GUARD #2

Yeah, they were amazing fighters. Took on like three guys at once, but they were wearing these really weird turtles costumes.

(nods)

Never seen anything like it.

Outside the lair, Donatello presses the three-digit security code into the keypad and the secret doorway slides open. Splinter lowers the volume on the TV as the turtles return home.

RAPHAEL

Mission accomplished, sensei!

LEONARDO

The challenge has been issued, the battle will commence.

MICHELANGELO

And I'm starving!

Splinter turns up the volume on the TV as April concludes her interview with the guard who saw the 'men in turtle costumes'.

SPLINTER

You were seen!

RAPHAEL

Only for a few seconds, Master.

MICHELANGELO

Yeah, we struck hard and faded away!

LEONARDO

It was mostly Raph's fault.

Raphael gives Leo a dirty look and smacks him in the arm.

SPLINTER

Ninjitsu is the art of stealth, my sons! Every moment that a ninja is seen, he puts himself in danger of being defeated by a better fighter or something he could not deduce.

All four turtles respectfully hang on Splinter's every word.

SPLINTER

Your mission was successful. The battle will commence. But risking yourself was unnecessary. I want us to work together. I want justice for my master.

Splinter puts his hand on Leo's shoulder.

SPLINTER

But I do not want to lose my sons.

EXT. APRIL'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - EVENING

April O'Neil lives in an apartment building above an antique shop called 'Second Time Around Antiques and More'. Her car pulls up to the curb and she walks in after work.

INT. 'SECOND TIME AROUND' ANTIQUE SHOP - CONTINUOUS

April walks into the antique shop, past a photograph of herself, her mother and her father when she was young. The photo was taken during the grand opening of this store. April walks through the store and up a flight of stairs to her apartment.

INT. NEW YORK POLICE DEPARTMENT - MOMENTS LATER

Kevin Laird is in the forensics lab with some scientists who hand him photographs of the fingerprints that they dusted off of the gun that Raphael had unloaded during the fight.

POLICE SCIENTIST #1

Honestly, I don't know what to make of them. They look like fingerprints. The lines are all in sync, but-

DETECTIVE LAIRD

The print is enormous.

POLICE SCIENTIST #2

(nods)

I mean, if a human fingerprint got smudged, the lines wouldn't be as perfect as that.

Kevin picks up the actual gun, which had been dusted for fingerprints and is now in a plastic bag. He studies the fingerprints with a critical eye.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

I still need to get statements from some of the businessmen who were there. Most of them left before we arrived. I have one business left on my list.

Kevin looks down at a notepad. He has a list of businesses and all of them have been crossed off except T.C.R.I.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - CONTINUOUS

Donatello is sitting at his computer. He prints out a picture that Raph took of the businessmen who were at Saki's meeting. He starts doing research on the Internet. He prints out a few more things and walks over to Master Splinter.

Raphael is punching a punching bag. Leonardo is reading a book about Feudal Japan and Michelangelo is on the pay phone that Donatello rigged up in this sewer lair.

MICHELANGELO

(on phone)

I want a large, thick crust with double cheese, ham, pepperoni...

DONATELLO

Master Splinter. I did some research on all of these businesses. Most of them were legitimate. One of them was suspected to be a mob front and the other one, I really couldn't find any information on.

Donatello hands Splinter a picture of one of the badges that the businessmen were wearing at the meeting. It read T.C.R.I.

DONATELLO

Techno-Cosmic Research Industries. I couldn't find an address or anything. Must be some kind of a scientific think tank.

RAPHAEL

Maybe you should get a job there, Donnie. Start bringing home the bacon.

DONATELLO

Hey, if I ate as much bacon as you.

SPLINTER

No matter. Our focus should be on the fight.

LEONARDO

That's right. After we eat, we practice.

SPLINTER

No, Leonardo! There will be time to hone our skills. This is a time for celebration-with family.

MICHELANGELO

(still on phone)

And NO anchovies! I mean, NO anchovies! You put anchovies on this thing and you are in big trouble, okay?

Michelangelo realizes that he is getting a bit loud and that his brothers are staring at him.

MICHELANGELO

Um, that'll do. And the clock's ticking, dude!

Donatello laughs as Mikey hangs up the phone.

LEONARDO

Once we start training again, we're going to work on our stealth techniques.

RAPHAEL

Geez, Leo, would you knock it off! Even Splinter's telling you to chill!

LEONARDO

Just think its an area where we could improve-some more than others.

RAPHAEL

You dissin' my skills, teacher's pet?

LEONARDO

I'm _dissin'_ you for jumping into a group of armed ninjas _screaming_ like a rabid wolverine.

RAPHAEL

(shrugs)

I kicked their butts.

LEONARDO

You endangered the operation.

RAPHAEL

I delivered the note.

LEONARDO

You didn't follow orders. The longer we were there, the more danger there was-if it was up to me, we would have left your arrogant tail back here.

RAPHAEL

Ohhhh, so _that's_ what's bothering you.

(pause)

It's NOT up to you.

Raphael walks closer to Leo and starts pointing an accusing finger at him.

RAPHAEL

And where do you get off calling ME arrogant? Barking orders when one who's REALLY calling the shots wants us to have a quiet meal together. Well, y'know what? I don't need any of your crap, Leo! I can fend for myself. I'm going out!

Raphael grabs a trench coat off of a coat rack that has four trench coats on it, pulls a 1940's-style detective hat out of a nearby box and leaves.

When Raphael is just outside the door of their sewer lair, Mikey runs after him.

MICHELANGELO

Hey, Raph! Wait up! Look, I know Leo's wound a little tight, but you know Splinter rides him kinda hard, cuz he's the oldest and all.

RAPHAEL

(sighs)

Mikey, you ever wonder why Master Splinter taught us to fight to begin with?

MICHELANGELO

So we can defend ourselves. Y'know, cuz we're-we're different. People might not understand and they get afraid. Hateful, even.

RAPHAEL

Splinter always tells us to stay hidden in these god-forsaken sewers because people wouldn't understand us and then he plays chess in Central Park-in broad daylight!

(sighs)

It just makes me wonder what else Splinter has been trying to keep from us. It makes me wonder what business we have risking our necks for some fifteen year old blood feud that Splinter's _master_ started. _That's_ what he's been training us for. Not because he gives a crap about this so-called 'family'!

Raphael punches the wall of this sewer tunnel out of frustration. There is an awkward pause.

RAPHAEL

Mikey, there's a big world out there beyond this damn sewer-and odds are that _this_ is not the only place for me. The _minute_ that I'm absolutely sure of that-I'm gone!

Raph walks away. Splinter has been listening from behind the door at this conversation. His head stoops with sorrow.

INT. SAKI SECURITY SYSTEMS BUILDING - NIGHT

Saki walks down the hallways with Baxter Stockman, who is holding his laptop under his arm.

BAXTER

I know that you had your doubts about whether or not a synthetic robot could have the same reflex speed as a well-trained human ninja, but I think you will find my new research promising.

SAKI

I didn't invite you here to talk about the robot ninja program. I actually wanted to find out more about one of your older projects.

A MINUTE LATER.

They walk into Saki's office. Baxter sets up his laptop on Saki's desk.

BAXTER

I invented the Mousers to be an efficient pest control alternative. Little robots that can crawl into spaces and eat rats.

Baxter shows Saki a video on his laptop of a demonstration he did five years ago. Baxter is narrating the video as his assistant, a five-years-younger version of April O'Neil holds up a small robot with a round head and sharp teeth. This robot was a head smaller than your average Chihuahua.

BAXTER

My assistant, Ms O'Neil, is holding the Mouser robot.

Baxter releases a rat into a maze. April activates the Mouser robot and releases it into the other end of the maze. The Mouser robot shines a laser sight from a small port on the top of his head and scans his area before stomping forward.

BAXTER

These Mousers were actually designed to hunt in packs, for larger rat problems in larger areas. They are small enough to fit into pipes and other crevices that vermin may hide.

The rat starts running around the maze and sniffing his surroundings before the Mouser poked its head around the corner with its laser sight shining into the camera.

Saki watches the video with keen interest as the Mouser tears the rat apart. Ripping noises and the squealing of the rat can be heard as Baxter beams with pride.

BAXTER

This device never went anywhere because people thought it was an animal rights violation. The company pulled my funding.

(scoffs)

Defending rats.

SAKI

Can you build me more of these?

BAXTER

Sure. I actually have these same ones.

SAKI

No. I want them bigger. Three, four times as big. And a whole pack of them. And build them strong enough to take down a brick wall.

BAXTER

I think I can do that.

(smiles)

And what exactly should I program these 'Mousers' to hunt?

Saki gives the scientist an evil, knowing smile.

EXT./INT. THE T.C.R.I. BUILDING. - NIGHT

Detective Laird talks to some T.C.R.I. representatives who were present at Saki's building when the turtles attacked it. After asking them a few questions, these scientists are showing the detective to the door. Their names are DR. KOROBON, DR. GLURIN and DR. OBLIGADO.

DR. KOROBIN

I am sorry that I could not be more help to you, but I am afraid that we only saw as much of those turtle fellows as anyone.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

I understand. And thank you.

DR. KOROBIN

Always a pleasure. And just remember that you always have a home here.

Detective Laird gives the doctors a respectful nod and leaves the facility. The scientists head back to their labs and talk.

DR. GLURIN

I still don't agree with his living among the humans. What if he is caught?

DR. OBLIGADO

He is very perceptive and very well respected among their security forces, Glurin. If he wants to hunt down those mutations, he will succeed.

The three scientists walk into a room that contains an enormous, but non-functioning teleportation device that they are working on.

DR. KOROBIN

It has been fifteen years, hasn't it, since we lost that canister? And this is the first time any mutated anomalies have been seen.

DR. OBLIGADO

Yes, but we must not let these creatures distract us from our work on the transmat device. Once we get off this miserable planet and back to the lush forests of our home world, none of this will matter.

The scientists sit down at a table and continue to discuss their work.

DR. KOROBIN

That mutagen was a toxic side effect of the fuel for our ship. We disposed of it properly-most of it, but-fascinating what it did to those Earth creatures.

DR. GLURIN

Agreed. Fascinating, but Dr. O is right. We have more pressing matters. Matters of Utrom survival.

Dr. Korobin agrees and the scientists begin their work.

EXT. A MOVIE THEATER - NIGHT

Raphael, dressed in his trench coat and hat, walks out a movie theater and looks up at the marquee. He had just seen the movie 'Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen'. He did not like the movie very much.

RAPHAEL

(nods)

Well, that didn't make any sense!

A man runs by an old lady and grabs her purse as he runs by.

OLD LADY

Somebody stop him!

Raphael trips the purse snatcher, grabs him after he lost his balance and slams him into the nearest brick wall. Raphael holds his sai up in front of the snatcher's face.

RAPHAEL

Y'know, I don't think that purse matches your shoes. Drop it!

The young man is scared and drops the purse. Raphael lets the criminal go and picks up the lady's purse. Raphael walks over to the lady and hands it back as the criminal runs into the park across the street.

OLD LADY

Oh, thank you, sir! You work for the movie theater, right?

RAPHAEL

Huh?

OLD LADY

That's why you're dressed up like an alien, right? Promoting some new science fiction picture?

RAPHAEL

Um.

(pause)

Yeah.

Raphael looks across the street and sees a man in a hockey mask, holding a baseball bat with a golf bag on his back. This man drops out of a tree and runs into the park, seemingly after the fleeing purse snatcher.

EXT. CENTRAL PARK - MOMENTS LATER

Casey Jones, wearing a hockey mask, beats the purse snatcher with a baseball bat and brutally kicks him when he is down. Raphael grabs Casey's shoulder and tries to pull him away from the mugger.

RAPHAEL

Hey, bro! That's enough!

Casey hits him. Raphael staggers back and the bloodied mugger gets away again.

CASEY

You let him get away? I was teaching that punk a lesson.

RAPHAEL

Not your job.

CASEY

I make it my job.

RAPHAEL

Leave it for the cops!

CASEY

The cops? They're part of the problem!

(shrugs)

Well, I guess I have another punk to teach some manners to.

Casey pulls a second baseball bat out of his golf bag.

RAPHAEL

Come on, man! I don't wanna fight.

Casey swings at Raphael with his baseball bats. Raphael ducks the swings and jumps back. His hat falls off and Raph pulls off his trench coat. Now Casey can see his green-skinned, shelled opponent a bit clearer. Raph pulls out his sais.

CASEY

What are you? Like, a Martian?

Raph is surprised.

RAPHAEL

Hey, pinhead! Do I look like an alien to you?

Headlights shine behind Casey as two police cars pull into the park. They turn on their red lights as Casey turns to look at them. He turns back towards Raphael and the turtle is gone. Two cops exit the cars.

POLICE #1

Sir! Please put the baseball bats down and put your hands on your head.

Casey complies as the police officers arrest Casey.

EXT. A STREET CORNER. - MOMENTS LATER

Michelangelo is standing on a street corner, wearing a trench coat and hat like Raph's. A car pulls up with a decal on the side that reads 'Pizza Cave'. The pizza guy gets out.

PIZZA GUY

You Mikey?

Mikey nods.

MICHELANGELO

Pizza time!

Mikey pays for his pizza, takes it and heads over to a grate that leads into a storm drain. He opens the grate and hops into the sewers as the pizza boy watches with a puzzled look on his face.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - MOMENTS LATER

Splinter sits at the same table with Leo, Mikey and Don as they eat pizza. He is eating some sushi with some chopsticks.

MICHELANGELO

Hey, I wouldn't worry about Raph. He just needs to blow off some steam. I mean, he's always telling us how the sewers make him claustrophobic sometimes.

DONATELLO

Yeah, I mean, who's to say he doesn't have A.D.D. or bi-polar. Those conditions make people anxious.

LEONARDO

(snickers)

Who ever heard of a turtle with bi-polar?

MICHELANGELO

Who ever heard of a turtle with _teeth?_

Mikey takes a bite of his pizza, showing Leo his pearly whites.

SPLINTER

I understand what troubles your brother. We have been confined down here for 15 years. What troubles me is that your brother's anger reminds me of my master's enemy, Oroku Saki.

FLASHBACK - INT. HAMATO YOSHI'S APARTMENT - DAY

The wind blows through the curtains in Yoshi's apartment, blowing flower petals into the house, past the cage of Yoshi's pet rat, which is sitting on the window sill.

**FIFTEEN YEARS AGO.**

Yoshi holds his beloved Tang Shen as they stand near a window that overlooks the city of Osaka.

TANG SHEN

(subtitled)

**You have been chosen to lead the assassin army that will free our land of our Emperor's treachery.**

YOSHI

(subtitled)

**And when the mission is done, I will need to escape to America until the Foot Clan can assure a peaceful transition to a more worthy leader.**

Tang Shen is sad.

TANG SHEN

(subtitled)

**This will be the last time either of us will be in this place.**

YOSHI

(subtitled)

**For a while. But not the last time that we will be together-**

Yoshi hands Tang Shen an envelope with plane tickets.

YOSHI

(subtitled)

**-IF you come with me!**

Tang Shen sheds a tear of happiness as Yoshi gives her a kiss.

Suddenly, the door to Yoshi's apartment is kicked open by a firm boot. Oroku Saki walks into the apartment, accompanied by three ninjas and wearing an old-fashioned battle helmet on his head, one with a face mask that revealed nothing but his eyes. He holds his fists at his side with arm gauntlets that litter his forearms with spikes.

YOSHI

(subtitled)

**What is the meaning of this treachery!**

SAKI

(subtitled)

**I challenge! Any who would entrust YOU with the fate of this clan, Hamato Yoshi!**

Tang Shen runs for cover, taking the rat cage off of the window sill and running into another room.

YOSHI

(subtitled)

**You are the one who has been affiliating rouge clan members with the Yakuza! The only reason I have not informed the Masters is because of your usefulness to this mission.**

SAKI

(subtitled)

**A mission that I shall lead!**

The three ninjas that accompanied Saki draw their swords. Yoshi takes a sword of his own off of the wall as Tang Shen frightfully looks on, peering around the corner. Saki steps forward and holds up his spiked arms.

SAKI

(subtitled)

**Attack!**

Yoshi attacks Saki and he blocks the blows with his arm gauntlets, pummeling Yoshi when he gets the chance. The fate rages fast and furious for some time. Tang Shen sneaks closer and closer to the exit with the rat's cage in her hands. She runs down four flights of stairs with this cage.

Tang Shen runs outside and looks up when she hears a window smashing. She looks up and shrieks in horror when she sees Hamato Yoshi falling from a four-story window that he has just been forced through.

The rat looks up from his cage and sees Yoshi falling from the broken shards of that window from his cage.

END OF FLASHBACK.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - NIGHT

Splinter concludes his story with three of his turtles listening.

SPLINTER

That was before Tang Shen moved to New York, just as my Master Yoshi had planned-to protect her.

(sighs)

I do not know if Oroku Saki knows that she is here, but he has corrupted the ideals of the freedom that the Foot Clan once stood for.

LEONARDO

And she's the only witness to the murder.

SPLINTER

Yes.

(nods)

That is why our mission must not fail.

INT. NEW YORK POLICE DEPARTMENT - NIGHT

Casey Jones is sitting in an interrogation room. Detective Kevin Laird places a file folder on the table.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Mr. Jones, I have a man in the next room who claims that you attacked him with a baseball bat.

CASEY

He mugged an older woman.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

He claims you weren't around when that happened.

CASEY

I saw him.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

From that tree that he claims you were perched in?

Casey leans back in his chair.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

You know, we have three other reports tonight of men who were attacked by a mysterious assailant in a hockey mask. All of them criminals.

CASEY

I don't like bullies.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Neither do I-which is why I want to find the guy in the green makeup that Mr. Dalton claims broke up your little encounter.

Casey thinks.

CASEY

Green makeup?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Yes. Get enough vague reports about something unusual happening in this city and they all start to gel, forming a clearer picture. A few security guards over in Manhattan claimed that they were attacked by men in turtle costumes. This guy claims that you fought with a man who had green makeup and a trench coat.

Detective Laird holds up pictures of the weird fingerprints that he had gotten off of the gun that Raphael had touched.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

You wouldn't happen to have seen anything unusual-some kind of creature that could have made these enormous fingerprints?

CASEY

Creature?

Casey laughs.

CASEY

Have you checked the sewers?

Detective Laird puts his pictures back in their folder.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

I am sorry that you aren't more cooperative, Mr. Jones.

CASEY

Look, pal. What can I tell you? My apartment was broken into and the cops took all damn night getting there. My grandmother could have been killed!

DETECTIVE LAIRD

So you decided to take the law into your own hands.

CASEY

(shrugs)

That's how I know its in GOOD hands.

LATER.

Casey Jones sits in a jail cell until the warden comes up to his cell and tries to get his attention by banging his night stick against the bars.

WARDEN

Mr. Jones. Your bail has been paid.

Casey stands up and sees his grandmother standing behind the warden.

INT. CASEY'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - NIGHT

Casey is home, watching TV late at night. He hears a tapping against the window. Casey is surprised to see Raphael perched on his fire escape. He stares at Raphael with a look of confusion. Raphael waves at him.

EXT. CASEY'S ROOFTOP - LATER

Casey and Raphael sit on his rooftop and talk. Raphael has his sais placed next to him on the rooftop.

RAPHAEL

I'm sorry I'm so impulsive. I just-I understood why you were upset and I didn't want you getting in any kind of trouble.

Raphael looks down at his sais and adjusts them so that they are lined up with one another perfectly.

CASEY

It's okay. I appreciate your concern. Now, I gotta pay my grandma back the bail money she spent on me.

(nods)

Like we're not broke enough. She doesn't need that.

RAPHAEL

You live with your grandmother?

CASEY

Yeah. We both hit hard times about a year ago and we decided to just watch out for each other. That's what family is for, you know? You help each other, protect one another-

RAPHAEL

(nods)

That's true. My brothers get on my nerves sometimes, but-

CASEY

Wait, so you have brothers? Like, more giant turtles?

Raphael nods.

CASEY

And you live in the sewer, right?

RAPHAEL

Yeah. But honestly, I can't stand it down there.

Raphael looks around at the city, the tall buildings and the big lights.

RAPHAEL

THIS is where I truly belong, the space, the fresh air-

CASEY

Fresh air? In New York?

(laughs)

Well, I guess if you live in a sewer-

RAPHAEL

(sarcastic)

Ha ha!

INT. CASEY'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - MOMENTS LATER

Casey takes Raphael back inside his apartment and Raphael looks through a collection of old VHS tapes that he has. They are all labeled with names of old TV shows.

RAPHAEL

You have quite a collection here, Casey.

CASEY

And this was _before_ DVD box sets.

LATER.

Raphael and Casey sit in front of the TV and watch together, eating popcorn.

RAPHAEL

That's the thing about these shows from the 80's. They always had to have one episode every year that tackled a serious message, everything from kidnapping to anorexia.

CASEY

A very _special_ 'Growing Pains'.

RAPHAEL

(laughs)

Yeah and all the gangs on these shows, like, if there was this group of 'bad' kids-the gang _had_ to be interracial and the leader of the gang _had_ to be a white kid so the show wasn't racist.

CASEY

Oh, yeah-like 'The Greatest American Hero', those kids Ralph Hinkley was teaching.

RAPHAEL

"Yo, Mr. H!"

CASEY

(laughs)

Surprised a turtle would notice that, but, yeah-not very realistic.

EXT. NEW YORK CITY. - MORNING

The sun rises over a metropolitan skyline.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - CONTINUOUS

The sewer lair has many cut-off sewer tunnels that the turtles use as their bedrooms. Each turtle sleeps in one and that becomes his bedroom, so he can decorate it with posters as he pleases.

Leo, Mike and Don start to wake up. Splinter is already up and is drinking some tea. The turtles all take off their eye masks when they go to sleep, so as they wake up, they put them back on.

MICHELANGELO

Man, I'm starving!

DONATELLO

Again?

LEONARDO

You know the rules. No breakfast until we practice.

Leonardo picks up his swords.

LEONARDO

Master Splinter. Where's Raphael?

SPLINTER

He did not come home last night, my sons.

MICHELANGELO

He stayed out all night?

DONATELLO

He's never been gone this long.

SPLINTER

I know. After your exercises, you must go and find him.

MICHELANGELO

After breakfast?

SPLINTER

Yes, Michelangelo. After breakfast.

MICHELANGELO

Sweet.

(laughs)

Time to practice.

Michelangelo turns on a nearby boombox and some dance music starts to play. The other two turtles seem to approve of the song that Mikey picked.

LEONARDO

Music to 'ninja' by.

Mike pulls out his nunchaku and spins them around his person as he does a dance move that involves him gliding across the floor of the turtles' home. Donatello does the same thing with his bo staff, turning his ninja moves into a dance, doing his sparring exercises to the beat of the music. Leonardo follows suit with his katana blades, skillfully practicing his moves to the beat of the music.

Splinter smiles at the antics of his sons, finally turning his head and heading into a different room to drink his tea.

INT. APRIL'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - MORNING

April O'Neil is sitting at her kitchen table, having coffee with her mother, Lisa, who came to visit early in the morning.

APRIL

So, how's Robyn, mom?

LISA

She's good. Just got promoted to head of her department.

APRIL

She still dating that plumber?

LISA

Frank. Yes. Well, he's not a plumber. He owns his own bathroom fixture business. He just bought some beach front property in Malibu. Got it for half price because the old lady who lived there just died. Like $120,000.

APRIL

Oh.

(nods)

Is he still a big Raiders fan?

LISA

Who?

APRIL

Frank. Last time I talked to Robyn, she said that Frank was a big football fan.

LISA

I don't know about that. I'm not a big sports fan.

APRIL

You seem to know alot about his financial status, though.

LISA

Hey, I'm just watching out for my daughter. God knows she hasn't had too much luck in the 'men' department. Frank seems like a real winner.

APRIL

You've never met him. They live all the way in California. You know _nothing_ about him personally.

LISA

Yes, but if he can afford beach front property, obviously, he can support her if-things progress.

APRIL

He could be a sex offender for all you know.

LISA

(rolls her eyes)

Now, you know Robyn does background checks on all her boyfriends. Side effect of growing up in New York.

APRIL

Dad supported us just fine without three houses and a yacht. He just had this little antique shop and a family who loved him.

LISA

Yes, which is why I would like to see one of my daughters find a nice man who is as dedicated to them as your father was to me. Maybe some grandkids before I die.

APRIL

(laughs)

You want me to ruin my figure. I am on TV, you know.

LISA

What ever happened between you and that police detective? He was cute. You went out a couple of times.

APRIL

Kevin?

(laughs)

He was sooooo BORING! For a cop in the most violent city in the world, he could put you to sleep if you asked him how his day was.

Lisa laughed and nodded her head as she sipped her coffee.

INT. SECOND TIME AROUND ANTIQUE STORE - LATER

April walks downstairs and into the antique shop that exists underneath her apartment. She flipped a 'closed' sign so it said 'open' and unlocked the door so that she could operate the business that her father started many years ago.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - MOMENTS LATER

Donatello takes Leo and Mikey into a section of their sewer lair where there is a van that Donatello had been working on. It was black and had a turtle shell painted on it.

MICHELANGELO

Wow! Donnie! Nice work on the paint job.

LEONARDO

Does it run?

DONATELLO

You bet it does! Hop in!

The turtles hop into what Donnie called 'the turtle van' and Donnie drove down a series of sewer tunnels until it came out of a sewer tunnel near a river. Peeling out, the van headed for the nearest road.

LATER.

Another van pulls up to this same tunnel near the river and four Foot ninjas climb out. They open the back and unload bunch of wooden crates. They stack the crates up next to the tunnel. One of the Foot ninjas pulls out a remote control and activates the contents of these crates. Larger, dog-sized versions of Baxter Stockman's rat-hunting Mouser robots suddenly burst out of these crates and start marching down the tunnel.

INT. THE SEWERS - CONTINUOUS

The Mousers head down the tunnel in perfect formation. Small lasers coming from the tops of their heads guide their way as they stomp at the cement beneath them with their claw-like metal feet and chomp with their deadly metallic mouths.

EXT. A STREET CORNER. - MOMENTS LATER

A homeless man sleeps on a bed of newspapers, clutching the whiskey bottle that he had been drinking the night before. He wakes up when the turtle van pulls up to the street corner next to him and Leonardo jumps out, wearing some very Japanese-looking clothes and his swords in sheaths on his back. The homeless man is frightened. The turtle van drives away.

LEONARDO

Hey, man!

Leo smiles and waves at the homeless man. The man is still scared, looking down at his whiskey bottle and wondering what was in this stuff.

LEONARDO

Excuse me, sir? Have you seen anybody who kinda looks like me? But with a red bandanna, scowl on his face, kind of a bad attitude?

The homeless man nods 'no'. Leonardo pulls some money out of his pocket and hands it to the man.

LEONARDO

Here ya go! I don't need it. I already have a home. Heck, I carry an extra home on my back.

Leo smiles and walks away from the homeless man, continuing his search for Raphael.

INT. ANOTHER STREET CORNER - LATER

Donnie drops off Michelangelo in a different neighborhood and he continues his search for Raphael.

Mike turns a corner and sees a large convention center. There are people walking towards this convention center who are dressed in various science-fiction related costumes from various films and TV shows.

MICHELANGELO

Finally, a place where I can just blend right in.

An overweight 30-plus year old man in a Klingon costume from 'Star Trek' walks past Mike.

NERD

Dude! That alien costume is awesome!

MICHELANGELO

Alien?

(laughs)

Yeah. I'm an alien from the planet Turtletron!

Mike laughs some more.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - MOMENTS LATER

Splinter is meditating in his lair. He starts to reminisce.

FLASHBACK - INT. THE SEWERS - DAY

Splinter remembers when the turtles were all seven years old, restlessly playing around in their lair. Mike and Raph were chasing each other around their sewer home, playing tag and rough-housing. Leonardo was watching a martial arts film on TV and Don was reading a book.

Splinter pulled a book about Renaissance art off of his book shelf and opened it. He saw a picture of Leonardo DaVinci. Someone had defaced the picture in this book by drawing a blue bandanna (like the one that Leonardo the turtle wore) over the artist's face with crayon. A speech balloon that had also been drawn with crayon made DaVinci say 'I'm a nerd!' Splinter flipped a few more pages and saw a red bandanna drawn with crayon over a picture of Raphael Sanzio. A speech balloon read 'I'm angry!' A picture of Donato diNicolo had a purple bandanna drawn with crayon with no speech balloon drawn. Finally, Splinter saw a picture of Michelangelo Buonarrotti with an orange bandanna drawn and the speech balloon read 'I'm awesome!' And he knew who had drawn in his book.

SPLINTER

Michelangelo!

The mischievous preteen mutant turtle turned to look at Splinter. Splinter held up the book.

MICHELANGELO

I'm an artist too, Master Splinter!

Splinter nods in annoyance and turns when a woman walks into the sewer lair. It is Tang Shen, eight years older than when she escaped Japan with her lover's pet rat. The turtles are excited to see her.

LEONARDO

Aunty Shen!

DONATELLO

Awesome!

SPLINTER

Welcome!

(bows respectfully)

Thank you for coming! They are anxious to show you what they have learned.

Tang Shen doesn't know what to expect.

LATER.

The turtles engage in a sparring session. Tang Shen watches Mike spin his nunchaku with skill and the other turtles spar with sticks.

TANG SHEN

They are amazing! Master Yoshi could not have trained them any better.

SPLINTER

I do not know how we will get to Japan, but-I will give them seven more years of training and then-they will be ready. Oroku Saki will pay for his treachery!

Splinter places his hand on Shen's shoulder.

SPLINTER

The loss that he caused both of us! And we shall have revenge!

The turtles continue to spar.

END OF FLASHBACK.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - DAY

Splinter opens his eyes and looks at the clock on the wall. He gets up from his sitting position, using his cane to help him up.

EXT. A STREET CORNER. - MOMENTS LATER

Mike and Don walk down the street together.

MICHELANGELO

You think there's a pizza place around here?

DONATELLO

This is Chinatown, Mikey. Would you settle for some General Tso?

Don notices a building with the letters T.C.R.I. on it.

DONATELLO

Mikey! Look!

MICHELANGELO

What is that?

DONATELLO

T.C.R.I. Those businessmen, the ones I couldn't find any information about. That must be their building.

MICHELANGELO

You don't think they could have abducted Raph?

DONATELLO

Only one way to find out.

MICHELANGELO

By employing the art of stealth.

DONATELLO

Yes.

(pause)

Stealth. Make sure you use it, Mikey.

MICHELANGELO

Come on, Donnie. Look who you're talking to.

DONATELLO

I know exactly who I am talking to.

INT. THE T.C.R.I. BUILDING. - MOMENTS LATER

Both Don and Mike were crawling through the ventilation ducts of this T.C.R.I. building. Don peeks through a vent beneath him. He sees a bunch of scientists (who look perfectly human) looking at a blue orb inside of a glass case.

DR. KOROBIN

This orb can take on the properties of any energy source. All we need is one sliver of the fuel that we need for our spaceship and we will be able to return home.

DR. OBLIGADO

Or it can fuel our transporter by itself. We may not be able to go home, but we can get to another dimension where the technology is more advanced than it is here.

DONATELLO

(whispers)

What is that? I've never heard of such a thing.

Donatello continues to crawl through the ducts and Mike looks through the same grate.

The three scientists were sitting around a table. Almost in unison, they pull open their shirts, revealing a robot body underneath with a small, slimy, brain-like alien in the stomach area, controlling the robotic human body. These brain-like aliens are called Utroms.

Each Utrom crawled out of their human body, onto a table and these brain-like aliens continued their conversation. They spoke in their own alien tongue.

Mike was stunned. His mouth hung open as he tried to speak. He could not move. Don could not see the aliens, but he could tell something was wrong with Mike.

DONATELLO

Mikey! What's the matter?

Mike continued to stare blankly at the weird-looking aliens. Suddenly, the vent that he was leaning on caved in and Mike fell through. He fell out of the ceiling and landed on the floor of this room with a scream and a thud.

Don poked his head through the hole in the ceiling as Mike got up. The two Utroms were startled as Mike rubbed his head.

DONATELLO

Mikey!

Don sees the small round aliens on the table and reacts with disgust.

DONATELLO

(sorta girly)

Ewwwwwww!

Dr. Korobin crawled back into his human body. He reached for a phone with his human hand as the other two Utroms stared blankly at Mike, while they were sitting on the table.

DR. KOROBIN

Intruder alert! Intruder alert! Level 6G.

Chrome-colored metallic robots with Utroms operating them stomped into the room with ray guns at the ready. Don dropped out of the ceiling as well and followed Mikey as he ran out the nearest unblocked door, dodging two laser blasts that were fired.

Mike and Don found themselves running through the hallway, past many human-looking Utrom scientists, who were surprised and disturbed to see two fleeing mutant turtles.

DONATELLO

Stealth, my butt!

MICHELANGELO

Hey! It's not my fault! Did you see those things?

More chrome-robot security guards came around the corner, cutting off the two fleeing turtles. A ray gun blast was fired that hit Don in the chest. It knocked him backwards and right through a wall.

MICHELANGELO

Donnie! Donnie!

Mike ran through that hole in the wall and into warehouse area that housed a bunch of giant crates and some high-tech equipment for storage. Donnie had been slammed up against a crate that he had damaged. He was getting back up.

Don looked down at his arm and noticed a small metal piece that was somehow attached to his arm. A red light on this piece was blinking. Don tried to pull it off, but could not, not even with his teeth. Mike was alarmed as the Utrom robot security guards entered the room. There were seven of them and they all had ray guns pointed at him.

MICHELANGELO

This has gotta be a bad dream!

Donatello looked down at his arm and saw a whole swarm of insects, small chrome metallic insects that were crawling up his leg and onto his arm. Each of these little robot bugs crawled into the metal piece on his arm and disappeared.

MICHELANGELO

In like, three minutes, I'm going to wake up at home, in my bed with leftover pizza in the fridge!

Donatello opened up his hand and saw a ball of energy dancing at his fingertips. The Utrom robots looked scared. Mikey stared at Don in disbelief.

MICHELANGELO

Whoa!

DONATELLO

Ninja vanish!

Don threw that ball of energy at the wall behind him. A hole was blown in this wall and this allowed Don and Mike to escape. When the Utrom guards made it outside into the yard that surrounded their building, the two mutant turtles were gone.

INT. CENTRAL PARK - LATER

Master Splinter walked through the park, past many people who were playing chess. He got some curious looks before he found his old friend Tang Shen sitting next to one of these boards. She was fifteen years older than when she left Japan with her beloved Yoshi's pet rat.

Splinter sat next to Tang Shen and started playing chess with her.

SPLINTER

It is done. My sons have issued the challenge to our mortal enemy and the battle will commence.

TANG SHEN

And you're not worried?

SPLINTER

No. They have mastered the fighting arts, exceeding the best fighters from Yoshi's clan. I have nothing but faith that they will be able to kill Saki.

TANG SHEN

I didn't mean that. Aren't you _worried_ about them? About their safety? You know my husband and I have two boys, right?

SPLINTER

Yes, I met them. Lovely children. How is your family? Forgive me for not asking earlier.

(smirks)

I was 'all-business'.

TANG SHEN

They're good. They play soccer. Both of them made the All-Star team this year.

SPLINTER

Excellent. Sportsmanship is most honorable.

TANG SHEN

Yes.

(awkward pause)

I guess what I'm trying to say is that, even though I know that my sons are really good soccer players, I still worry about them getting hurt. Even though I know that they know the risks and that they have the best coaches in New York, I still worry about them. Because I love them and any injury that they get affects me too. Can you understand that, Splinter?

SPLINTER

(nods)

I can.

TANG SHEN

Good. Because those boys love you too. And if you feel the same way, than they really are your sons. Not just a clan that you put together to fight an evil Emperor.

Splinter is surprised by Shen's words.

SPLINTER

I thought that you would be happy that my sons would avenge my master's death. We are closer than ever!

TANG SHEN

I was. Until I realized what was at stake here. I guess-you have to figure out what those four turtles mean to you. Are they just a team of Foot soldiers? Or are they-your family?

Splinter contemplates Shen's words.

EXT. A STREET CORNER. - MOMENTS LATER

Mike and Don wait on a street corner until the turtle van pulls up, driven by Leonardo. Mike and Don jump inside.

LEONARDO

What happened to you guys?

DONATELLO

You don't want to know.

In the van, Don looks at the small metal piece that is still attached to his arm.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - LATER

Splinter walks into his sewer lair and walks over to the bed that he sleeps in. Underneath it, there is a box. Splinter pulls out the box. There is a photo album in this box, but Splinter instead pulls out a broken glass canister.

FLASHBACK - EXT. CENTRAL PARK - AFTERNOON

Splinter remembers being an ordinary rat in his cage, being carried by Tang Shen FIFTEEN YEARS AGO through Central Park. Shen knelt down, opened the door to the cage and walked away. Splinter climbed out of his cage and started to chase after her, but she was soon lost in a crowd of people in the busy park.

Splinter found himself on a street corner. He looked up and saw a young man, a younger version of Casey Jones, wearing a hockey jersey and holding a glass bowl with four baby turtles in it. His grandmother was standing next to him.

GRANDMA

What are you going to name them?

CASEY

Um. Gretzky. Namath. Jordan. Yastrzemski.

GRANDMA

Really? A Red Sox player? Don't tell Daddy.

(laughs)

Suddenly, a truck in the intersection slammed on its brakes and skidded to a stop, catching the attention of all who heard the noise. A canister, filled with a green substance, flew off of the truck, spiraled through the air and hit that glass bowl.

BLACK SCREEN. SOUND OF SHATTERING GLASS.

INT. THE SEWERS - CONTINUOUS

Splinter ran into the sewers through a storm drain. He found the four turtles walking around a strange, glowing ooze, the only thing that was illuminated in this pitch black sewer. There was broken glass everywhere, both from the glass bowl and the canister. Splinter ran over to them and found himself standing in the slime himself.

The turtles started to grow in size. Their flippers grew fingers and they began to stand upright, looking around as they walked around in this green ooze. Splinter looked at his own paws and saw that they too, were growing hairy, clawed fingers.

END OF FLASHBACK.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - MOMENTS LATER

Splinter put the canister back in the box and heard a loud rumbling noise, accompanied by the loud pounding of stomping metallic feet. The brick wall that separated the sewer lair from the other underground tunnels crumbled and suddenly, there was a hole in this wall. Splinter was alarmed as Mouser robots started to flood into the lair. The lights from the Mousers' heads formed red dots all over Splinter.

The Mousers attacked Splinter and the elderly rat started to fight them off, between his quick reflexes and skilled use of his walking stick. Splinter reduced a number of them to scrap metal by slamming them against the nearest brick wall. He jumped into the air, hung from a sewer pipe and swung away from the mechanical horde as the Mousers pursued him.

Finally, one of the Mousers bit Splinter's leg. Splinter let out a yelp and stabbed the little robot in his mechanical eye with the end of his walking stick, rendering it useless. Splinter backed away from the oncoming wave of small, vicious robots, wincing in pain, realizing that he was hurt. He crouched down to one knee and closed his eyes, attempting to calm himself as the Mousers just kept coming.

INT. APRIL'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - LATER

April is at home. The phone rings.

APRIL

Hello?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

April. How are you? This is Kevin.

APRIL

Oh, hey, Kevin! What's up?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Not much. I was just doing a little work, trying to get statements from everyone who was at Saki's building the other day and I remembered that you once interned with Baxter Stockman.

APRIL

Yes, back in college.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Any chance you would come with me when I go interview him? He might be more inclined to talk if you're there. Might be a story in it for you.

APRIL

You think Saki's up to something, don't you?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Honestly, I'm more interested in the ones who crashed his little party.

APRIL

(frowns)

The guys in the turtle costumes?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Yeah.

APRIL

Kevin, Oroku Saki is the leader of a ninja clan with a history of assassination in Japan. They were hired to do security at seven buildings that were mysteriously robbed. And you're chasing after a bunch of weirdos trying to start an urban legend?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

We have all we need on Saki. Those 'weirdos' are the loose end. I want to know what history they might have with his Foot Clan. This might sound strange, but _they_ might be able to shed more light on this case than my other leads. I'm gonna go talk to him in a few hours. Are you in?

APRIL

(thinks)

Yeah, sure. I'll go.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Good. Thanks, April. May Williams ain't got nothin' on you.

April smiles.

INT. CASEY'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - MOMENTS LATER

Raphael woke up on Casey's couch. Casey and his grandmother are in the kitchen, drinking coffee. When Raphael walks into the kitchen, Casey's grandma stares at him with disbelief and is too stunned to say anything.

CASEY

Hey, Raph! Want some breakfast?

RAPHAEL

Naw, bro! I gotta get back to the sewers. I've never been gone this long before. My brothers and my Master Splinter are probably worried.

Grandma continues to stare in disbelief.

CASEY

Master Splinter. Is he a turtle too?

RAPHAEL

Naw, he's a rat.

Casey is confused. Grandma is still stunned.

Raphael looks outside through a window and sees a warehouse a block away being robbed. There were a few hoodlums loading a truck full of boxes and a tied up security guard nearby.

RAPHAEL

Casey! Look!

Casey sees the robbery.

CASEY

Wanna go bust some heads before you leave?

RAPHAEL

(laughs)

Yeah, buddy!

Casey grabs his hockey mask and his golf bag before following Raphael onto the fire escape, leaving his grandmother behind to sit in the kitchen and drink her coffee.

EXT. A WAREHOUSE. - MOMENTS LATER

One of the hoodlums that was loading the truck looked up to the roof and saw Casey standing there, holding a hockey stick.

CASEY

Well, this sure looks like a crime to me! Time for a penalty!

Casey drops off of the truck and slashes one of the hoodlums across the face with the blade of the hockey stick.

CASEY

Slashing!

Casey trips a second hoodlum with his stick.

CASEY

Hooking!

Casey starts beating more hoodlums with his hockey stick.

CASEY

High sticking!

Raphael walks around the truck and looks down at the three hoodlums that Casey has just beat up.

RAPHAEL

How about roughing?

CASEY

Who made you the ref?

Two more hoodlums walked out of the warehouse, carrying machine guns. Raphael bravely jumped in front of Casey and pushed him behind the truck as bullets started to spray.

RAPHAEL

Now, watch how a ninja does it!

Raphael hears the sound of a van revving up.

CASEY

What was that?

Raphael turns and sees a black van with Leonardo and Michelangelo standing on the top of it burst through the fence as it came onto the grounds of this warehouse. Mike and Leo jumped off of the van at the same time.

MICHELANGELO

Cowabungaaaaaa!

Both turtles put their heads and limbs into their shells as bullets are fired at them in mid-air. The bullets bounce off of their bullet-proof shells, making them spin, and the shells land next to these robbers. Leo pulled his head and limbs out of his shell as he landed on all fours, using his sword to slice the machine gun right in half before delivering a roundhouse kick. Mike did similarly with his nunchaku, knocking the hoodlum backwards and out cold.

Donatello got out of the turtle van, pulled out his wooden staff and was attacked by another hoodlum, wielding a switchblade. Donnie spun his staff, knocking the knife out of his enemy's hand before pointing the tip of his staff at the hoodlum's head. He slipped the weapon through his fingers and poked his attacker in the eye with the tip of the staff. The hoodlum staggered back.

DONATELLO

Eightball! Corner pocket!

Donnie knocked his attacker out with a kick and walked over to his brothers and Casey.

DONATELLO

Hey, guys! We found Raph!

MICHELANGELO

And Jason Voorhees.

CASEY

(sarcastic)

Ha ha!

All four turtles and Casey turned to find more hoodlums walking out of the warehouse with machine guns.

LEONARDO

Scatter!

All five heroes run in separate directions as the guns are fired. Raphael runs for a large warehouse door. One of these hoods fires bullets at him. The bullets hit his shell and knock him forward so that he smashes right through this rickety wooden door. He hears blaring rap music, lands on his shell and spins around a few times before being blinded by some lights.

Leo and Donnie hide behind the turtle van before realizing that the hoods are getting away. The truck with their stolen goods takes off with the crooks inside.

LEONARDO

Let's get 'em!

Leo and Donnie jump back into the turtle van. Donnie is driving. Casey runs after the turtle van, but it just keeps moving, peeling out and heading down the road.

CASEY

Hey, guys! Wait up!

Leo and Donnie pursue the stolen goods, following that truck down the street as Casey is left by himself.

INT. A NIGHTCLUB - CONTINUOUS

Raphael gets up and realizes that he is the center of attention. He is onstage in front of a few hundred people as he gets up and rubs his head, disoriented.

Mike runs into the club after Raphael and is also surprised when he is onstage.

MICHELANGELO

Hey, Raph! Are you okay?

(realization)

Whoa!

The rap music stops for a few seconds as the deejay doesn't know what to make of the two giant turtles that ended up on his stage. Mike and Raph just stand there, confused until Raph picks up the nearest microphone.

RAPHAEL

Yo, gimme a beat!

The deejay does give him a beat. The beat from 'The Way I Am' by Eminem. Raphael sees that the crowd is getting into the beat. He sees a red hooded sweatshirt lying on one of the amps. He grabs it and puts it on as he sees Mikey dancing along.

RAPHAEL

This song is for anybody who-oh, forget it! Shut up and listen!

To the absolute shock of Michelangelo, the red-masked mutant turtle flips the hood up on his head, grabs the mic again and starts rapping (free-styling) to the beat that the deejay had given him.

RAPHAEL

(rapping)

_I sit back-with this mask-and this shell-and these sais. And the holes in my mask-too big for my eyes. From the sewer I flee, so that I can be-the most meanest ninja turtle-on this Earth and since birth, I've been cursed-with this curse-it's berserk! I spit anger. It works._

Michelangelo has been bouncing along with the beat of the music this whole time. He finally jumps off the stage and the audience members carry him over their heads towards the back of the club.

EXT. A HIGHWAY - CONTINUOUS

The turtle van swerves in between cars in pursuit of the fleeing criminals.

LEONARDO

How are we gonna catch up to them, Donnie?

DONATELLO

Nitrous oxide!

Donatello presses a red button on the dashboard and, with a burst, the van starts going faster until they are driving alongside the criminal's van. The driver looks at Donatello. Donatello squints back at him.

The side door of the van opens and Leonardo climbs to the top of the turtle van, his blue bandanna flapping in the breeze. He jumps from one van to the other. When the hoodlums hear Leo land on their roof, one of the hoodlums pulls out a machine gun.

There are curious onlookers in the surrounding cars as a giant turtle performs such a crazy stunt, including a father and a son in a station wagon.

SON

Daddy! What is that?

DAD

I don't know. Some weirdo dressed up like an alien!

SON

(confused)

Looks more like a frog.

Leonardo stands up on the roof, perfectly balanced and draws his katana blade. The hoodlum starts shooting up at Leo through the roof. Donatello realizes what is happening and swerves the turtle van to hit the criminal's van.

Between dodging the bullets and the van getting hit, Leonardo fell off of the roof of that van.

DONATELLO

LEO!

(rolls eyes)

Real bright, Donnie!

Leonardo stuck his sword into the side of the criminal's van and hung there by the handle to avoid being run over. The hoodlum inside of the van sees the sword poking through and walks towards the back of the van.

The driver quickly changes lanes and exits, leaving Donnie unprepared for what to do next. And he loses them.

DONATELLO

Damn it!

INT. A NIGHTCLUB - CONTINUOUS

The back doors swing open and more of the hoodlums that had been robbing the business next door come storming in with baseball bats. Raph is still rapping onstage.

RAPHAEL

(rapping)

_If it sells, then it helps-to relieve all this tension. Dispensin' these sentences-off my chest. All the stress that's been eating me recently. In my shell, then I rest again peacefully! But at least have the decency in you to leave me alone, when you freaks see me out when I'm chillin' or eating some pizza to not come and speak to me!_

Michelangelo ends up in a portion of the dance floor that has been cleared of people. Surrounded by human club-goers on all sides, Mikey is attacked by the hoodlums. Thinking this is all part of the show, the surrounding club-hoppers cheer the martial arts prowess of this skilled mutant turtle as he fights with his nunchaku to the beat of the music that his brother is performing.

RAPHAEL

(rapping)

_No, I don't know you-and no, I don't owe you a damn thing! I'm not Mr. Tortoise. Don't live in no forest!_

(points at his mask)

_This red is for anger! I can be a jerk! If you tempt me, my tank is on empty! And if you offend me, no patience is in me! I'm lifting you ten feet-in the air! I don't care who was there-and who saw me-just jaw you! Go buy you a lawyer! File you a lawsuit! I'll give you this finger-_

Raph holds up his index finger, which is also his middle finger because he only has three.

RAPHAEL

(rapping)

_-and jump in the sewer!_ _For real, I'm just tired of all, y'all! I don't mean to be mean, but that's all I can be is just me!_

Raphael is filled with adrenaline when he starts the chorus. This energy filters out into the audience and everyone in the audience is jumping up and down.

RAPHAEL

(rapping)

_And I am! Whatever you say I am! If I wasn't, than why would I say I am? My brother's coming for you-with his nunchaku!_

Raphael points at Mikey, who is still in the 'dance pit', but all of his previous attackers are knocked out at his feet. He is dancing around them to the beat of his brother's song, smiling, spinning his nunchaku and feeding off energy from the crowd.

RAPHAEL

(rapping)

_Mutant turtle! That's the way I am!_

Mikey continues to dance, having the time of his life.

EXT. CITY STREET - CONTINUOUS

Leonardo is still hanging from the criminal's van by his katana blade. He swings back and forth, then vaults up to the roof just as the side of the van is riddled with bullets, barely missing the turtle.

On the roof, Leonardo pulls a few smoke bombs off of his belt and tosses them through the skylight above the driver's seat of this van. Smoke fills the van as Leonardo grabs his sword out of the van's side and leaps to the side of the road. He leaps over a barrier and slides down a slippery hill as the van slams into the barrier further down the road and flips over.

Leonardo ends up splashing into a river. He pokes his head up from the water as police sirens can be heard. Leo looks up and watches them pass by.

LEONARDO

Still love being a turtle!

EXT. A DIRT ROAD. - LATER

Leonardo is walking home. The Japanese clothes that he had been wearing towards the beginning of his search for Raphael were wet and torn.

Suddenly, a motorcycle pulls up alongside him. It is Casey.

CASEY

Need a lift, Turtle Boy?

Leonardo shrugs and gets on the back of the cycle.

INT. THE T.C.R.I. BUILDING. - CONTINUOUS

Utrom scientists, in full human costumes, watch security camera footage of the turtles running through their facility.

DR. KOROBIN

That was a close call. We've never had outsiders that close before.

DR. GLURIN

How do you think they tracked us? Some kind of a E.S.P.? Side effect of the mutagen?

DR. KOROBIN

It's still unclear who they are after. Us or Saki?

DR. GLURIN

Maybe they think we're in league with him.

DR. OBLIGADO

Or maybe they want to know where they came from. Maybe they've traced the mutagen to us and-

(shrugs)

-they are looking for answers.

INT. THE SEWER LAIR - CONTINUOUS

The turtle van drives down a sewer tunnel and stops. The doors open and the four turtles get out. Leo and Raph are arguing.

RAPHAEL

Geez, will you calm down, Leo.

LEONARDO

I just think its unfair that you put the rest of us in danger with your irresponsible behavior.

RAPHAEL

Nobody asked you to come looking for me.

LEONARDO

Splinter did.

RAPHAEL

Exactly. Don't blame me for putting you in danger when Splinter's the one who can't let one of his little soldiers go AWOL.

LEONARDO

You let yourself be seen.

RAPHAEL

I was seen anyway. I just-embraced the moment.

MICHELANGELO

It was sort of cool being in front of that many human beings who weren't afraid of us. They were cheering for us, Leo.

LEONARDO

Because they thought you were in costume. People cheer at freak shows too, doesn't mean they respect.

RAPHAEL

Oh, they respected!

(nods confidently)

They respected the turtle skills!

Mikey laughs and gives Raph a high-three (only having three fingers).

The turtles walk down the tunnel heading towards the main part of their lair. Donatello gasps, as he is the first one to sense that there is something wrong.

The turtles walk into their lair and see that it is trashed. They see the hole in the wall and the furniture that is demolished.

MICHELANGELO

Whoa!

DONATELLO

Oh, my shell!

LEONARDO

What happened?

MICHELANGELO

We've been robbed!

Raphael picks up the head of one the broken Mousers as he looks around at all the robot parts of the Mousers that Splinter smashed.

RAPHAEL

Attacked is more like it. Look at this mess!

DONATELLO

These robots are smashed all over the place!

Raphael notices that there is blood on the teeth of the Mouser head that he was holding. Leonardo checks the other rooms for their master.

LEONARDO

Master Splinter!

Raphael angrily throws the Mouser head up against the wall as Donatello carefully studies some of the other wreckage.

LEONARDO

He's gone!

RAPHAEL

Not GONE!

LEONARDO

Well, he's not here!

Donatello picks up a piece of one of the broken Mousers, its foot, and shows Leo a logo on the bottom.

DONATELLO

I think I can find where these things came from.

MOMENTS LATER.

Donatello is working feverishly at his computer as the turtles start rummaging through the wreckage of their lair for clues.

Michelangelo starts looking through Splinter's bedroom. He pulls a box out from under his bed that has a photo album in it. He flips through it with a sentimental look in his eye, laughing at one older picture of himself.

He placed the photo album on the bed and pulls out part of the broken canister of ooze that Splinter had kept in this box from when he found the turtles. Mike had never seen it before. He sees the letters T.C.R.I. on the cap and gasps.

In the other room, Donatello shows Leonardo a printout of what he found online. Diagrams of the Mousers from Stockman Industries.

DONATELLO

These Mousers are alot bigger, but it says that they were designed to hunt rats.

LEONARDO

Who would design a rat catching device that big?

RAPHAEL

Unless they knew about Master Splinter. Or if they were gunning for us.

Leonardo turns to a different page and sees a picture of Baxter Stockman.

RAPHAEL

That's the guy! I mean, he was there at Saki's.

LEONARDO

This is retaliation for our attack. Saki's tracking us.

Mikey walks in the room holding the broken part of the ooze canister. He is quiet and seems sad.

RAPHAEL

Then let's break into this Stockman guy's facility and make sure he has one less lab rat!

Leo thinks for a second and then nods.

LEONARDO

Okay.

RAPHAEL

Really?

LEONARDO

Yes. Splinter trained us to avenge his master Yoshi. This is clearly Saki's handy work. As his soldiers-

RAPHAEL

Hey! We're not his soldiers, Leo. We're his _sons._ And a crazy guy in a hockey mask once taught me that family always sticks together.

DONATELLO

Are Leo and Raph actually agreeing on something?

MICHELANGELO

Seems like it.

DONATELLO

Ha! Well, Splinter will have to hear about this when we get him back.

Mikey holds up the canister so that Don can see the T.C.R.I. on the cap. Don is surprised when he sees that and takes it into his hands.

DONATELLO

Is this what I think it is?

MICHELANGELO

Must be.

Leo and Raph now take interested looks at the broken canister.

DONATELLO

I didn't know he still had it.

MICHELANGELO

None of us did.

LEONARDO

T.C.R.I. Isn't that the company Donnie was looking for?

MICHELANGELO

Donnie found it. We both did. Looking for Raph.

DONATELLO

This is where it all began.

RAPHAEL

Our family.

LEONARDO

I wonder why he never showed us before.

RAPHAEL

Doesn't matter. Let's go spring Splinter so we can ask him.

Leo, Mike and Raph head for the door as Don gently places the broken canister on a nearby table.

EXT. STOCKMAN LABS - LATER

A tall, cold-looking warehouse building.

INT. STOCKMAN LABS - CONTINUOUS

Detective Laird, Baxter and April O'Neil walk down a hallway together.

BAXTER

I don't know what to tell you other than they did seem to be wearing rather elaborate costumes.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

What is your business relationship with Oroku Saki?

BAXTER

He wanted me to rent out some of his ninja security guards.

(scoffs)

They were pretty ineffectual against those sideshow freaks.

EXT. STOCKMAN LABS - CONTINUOUS

The Ninja Turtles are in the back of the warehouse. Two security guards are knocked out alongside them as Donatello attempts to break into a computer console that will grant them access.

Donnie has taken the lid off of the computer console and is poking away at the wires with a screwdriver. Suddenly, the small metal piece on his arm starts to glow. Small metallic insects start crawling out of the metal piece and they crawl into the console. Leo sees them and stares in astonishment.

DONATELLO

Whoa! This again.

The metal insects get to work. A beep is heard and the door swings open. Leo watches the chrome insects crawl back into Donatello's arm.

LEONARDO

What was that?

DONATELLO

Alien nanotech.

LEONARDO

We're not aliens.

DONATELLO

(raises eyebrow)

Are you sure?

INT. STOCKMAN LABS - MOMENTS LATER

Baxter, Kevin and April are startled when an alarm goes off. Lights flash and windows start to be sealed up by shutters that are activated automatically.

COMPUTER VOICE

Intruder alert! Intruder alert! Intruder alert!

BAXTER

Please follow me. This is lockdown protocol.

Baxter guides April and Detective Laird into another room, one with many security camera screens.

INT. A WAREHOUSE. - CONTINUOUS

The four turtles walk around the warehouse portion of Stockman Labs. They look around at a bunch of crates.

MICHELANGELO

Whoa! This place is big!

RAPHAEL

So, how do we find Master Splinter?

LEONARDO

The way he taught us. The art of stealth.

MICHELANGELO

(to Donnie)

Worked for us last time.

Donatello laughs.

LEONARDO

Look for a ventilation duct or a-

Metallic stomping sounds can be heard.

RAPHAEL

You hear that?

The metallic stomping sounds got louder and louder. Raphael turns to his left. Small red dots of light suddenly reflect off his shell and arms. More red dots appear on the bodies of his brothers. The turtles turn around and see an army of Mousers standing there.

RAPHAEL

(turns to Leo)

At least we got the right place.

The Mousers start charging forward. One Mouser leaps up and bites Mike's arm with one pounce. Mike lets out a yelp and smashes that Mouser on the nearest ventilation pipe. The rest of the army attacks the four turtles with their speed and large, clamping, metallic mouths.

Leonardo slices Mousers in half with his katanas, but is soon overwhelmed by a team of these vicious little mouse-catchers. Donatello smashes a few Mousers that have clamped onto his bo staff, but is soon bitten by another. Raphael stabs the Mousers' laser light with his sai, but soon finds himself overwhelmed by the metallic hordes as well.

INT. STOCKMAN LABS - CONTINUOUS

April, Baxter and Detective Laird watch the turtles fight for their lives against these giant Mousers.

APRIL

Are those-?

BAXTER

Yes. Mousers.

(smiles)

Little size upgrade and they can handle bigger pests.

APRIL

I was referring to-

DETECTIVE LAIRD

The ninja turtles.

(smiles at April)

Yes. They're real.

INT. A WAREHOUSE. - CONTINUOUS

Michelangelo smashes more Mousers with his nunchaku. Donatello cautiously backs away from the fight and hides behind one of the bigger crates. He looks at his arm as a large horde of metallic insects start to flood out of the metal piece on his arm.

LEONARDO

Donnie! What's going on?

DONATELLO

Wish I knew!

The clusters of metal insects on his arm started to shape-shift until Donatello had a large chrome laser cannon covering his forearm. Donnie stared at this new piece of hardware in disbelief.

DONATELLO

Whoa!

Donnie pointed his new cannon at the Mousers and started to fire. Blasts of energy came out of the cannon and made quick work of the Mousers, as they exploded one by one.

The other turtles watch with astonishment as Donnie's rapid fire cannon destroyed these mechanical monsters, no matter what angle they leapt at him.

INT. STOCKMAN LABS - CONTINUOUS

Baxter continues to watch the turtles on the screens. He watches Donatello destroy Mousers with his cyborg arm.

BAXTER

(incensed)

NO! NOOOOOO!

Baxter slams his fist against the table in front of him.

INT. A WAREHOUSE. - CONTINUOUS

Donatello continues to reduce Mousers to spare parts. When a second horde stomped into the room, Donatello pointed his cannon at them. Concentrating, he made a crackling ball of energy dance at the end of his cannon. The ball quadrupled in size before hurtling across the room, destroying this second horde of Mousers and blowing a hole in the wall on the other side of the warehouse.

This hole led to another portion of the building. The turtles followed Donatello there.

DONATELLO

I think this area is clear.

MICHELANGELO

Dude, you gotta let me try that thing!

DONATELLO

I don't think I can, Mikey.

MICHELANGELO

Can you build me one?

Donatello saw a sign that read 'offices' and followed an arrow that led him up a flight of stairs.

Michelangelo looks up at a security camera hanging from the ceiling of the warehouse and turns to Raphael.

MICHELANGELO

(sarcastic)

You think we were seen?

The turtles follow Donatello up the stairs.

INT. STOCKMAN LABS - MOMENTS LATER

Baxter ferociously bangs on the keys of a nearby computer as Detective Laird holds his gun. April is hiding behind a chair.

BAXTER

I have no idea what kind of weapon that freak had on his arm. He didn't have it last time.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Well, they're on their way!

Suddenly, the door to the room that they are in explodes. Donatello, with his laser cannon, ominously steps through the smoke.

DONATELLO

Where...is...Stockman?

Detective Laird holds his gun on Donatello.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Freeze!

Donnie swings his cannon/arm and knocks the cop across the room, causing him to drop his gun in mid-air.

Baxter holds up his hands as April runs over to see if Kevin is okay. The other three turtles walk into the room.

BAXTER

I'm here.

Donatello walks over to Baxter and, using a feat of strength that surprises his brothers, lifts Baxter off of his feet and flips him upside down.

DONATELLO

Where's Splinter?

BAXTER

Who?

Baxter has a small blue ball in his tight fist as his arms dangle upside-down.

DONATELLO

Giant rat. Grey fur. Kimono. Where is he?

Baxter drops the ball to the ground. It emits a brilliant flash of light and electricity that makes the lights flicker and the security screens go blank. This is an EMP (electromagnetic pulse).

Donnie drops Baxter to the ground. When the light subsided, Don watches the cannon on his forearm deteriorate, turning to ash and returning his arm back to its normal state.

MICHELANGELO

What was that?

DONATELLO

EMP. I guess the nanobots couldn't take it.

Don looks up and sees Baxter running away from the turtles, laughing maniacally. His laughter ends when he dives through the nearest window, shattering the glass and disappearing. The turtles just kind of look at each other.

RAPHAEL

Boy, that guy has a few loose screws.

Leonardo looks up and sees both Detective Laird and April O'Neil standing on the other side of the room. Kevin walks towards the turtles. April stays back.

LEONARDO

Well, so much for stealth, Donnie. We got a police detective and a TV news reporter who saw the whole thing.

RAPHAEL

This Stockman guy knows where Splinter is! Let's take him back to our lair and _make_ him talk.

Raph punches his fist.

LEONARDO

Over my dead shell.

RAPHAEL

His little chomper-bots already found our lair, Leo. I'm sick of hiding!

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Gentlemen. Turtles. Perhaps a day will come when none of us will need to hide.

Detective Laird starts unbuttoning his shirt. He opens the shirt and reveals that the body of Detective Kevin Laird is actually a robotic one, piloted by a brain-like Utrom in its torso.

The robotic head and body of Detective Laird goes limp as the Utrom itself starts speaking in English.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Our alliance can be the dawning of a new era.

The turtles are astonished at this revelation. April faints dead away.

INT. SAKI SECURITY SYSTEMS BUILDING - NIGHT

Master Splinter is tied up tight with thick rope, attached to a pipe on a wall, physically drained from his fight with the Mousers. Suddenly, an arrow is fired from a bow and misses his head by mere inches, startling the elderly rodent.

Splinter looks up and sees four masked Foot clan ninjas. One of them has a bow and the other ninjas are laughing as the first ninja reloads his bow with a second arrow. He fires it and Splinter cringes as the arrow hits the wall behind him, on the other side of his head.

Oroku Saki, wearing his battle helmet, the mask and gauntlets, walks into the room and orders his men in Japanese. They quickly bow and run out of the room in obedience.

SAKI

Where are your turtles, rodent?

Saki walks closer to Splinter, pulling off the mask that covers his face and attaches to his helmet.

SAKI

Who are you-FREAKS? Where did you come from? What mad scientist could have possibly created you?

Saki holds up his gauntlet-covered fist to Splinter's face.

SAKI

And how do you know that WRETCHED Hamato Yoshi?

Splinter looks Saki in the eye and says nothing. Saki angrily gives Splinter a back fist across the face, cutting the rodent with the metal spikes on the back of Saki's hand.

SAKI

GAH! Freaks! I killed Yoshi _fifteen years ago!_ What fool would pit his minions against the might of the Foot Clan?

Splinter remains silent. Saki backs away from him and puts his mask back on. Splinter uses his sharp claws/nails to saw through the ropes that bind him.

SAKI

No matter. Your students will get what they came for, _gaijin!_ There will be a duel-and there will be a death. THEIRS!

Saki leaves the room and, walking through the hallway, he sees Baxter Stockman running towards him.

BAXTER

Master! The turtles! They found me! They came looking for the rat.

Baxter shows Saki a small handheld device with a small screen on it.

BAXTER

I planted a homing device on that cop that was looking for them.

SAKI

Detective Laird? How will this help me find them?

BAXTER

The detective came to my office looking for them and he was there when the turtles attacked me. I think he knows something. He'll find them soon and now we can track him.

Saki presses a few buttons on the device. The screen shows a diagram of the city. Pressing another button, Saki realizes that this device has tracked Detective Laird to the T.C.R.I. building, as he sees the name and address on the screen.

Saki yells out some Japanese words and within seconds, both he and Baxter are surrounded with Foot ninjas who have obeyed his commands and are awaiting further instructions.

As Saki commands his warriors in Japanese, Splinter can hear him from the other room. His eyes widen.

INT. THE T.C.R.I. BUILDING. - NIGHT

Donatello is working with Dr. Obligado on a transporter device. Mike and Raph are watching Donatello work. They both look bored. Leonardo is talking to the Utrom named Korobin who is outside of his robotic human body, standing on a table with small tentacles that Utroms use as appendages. Detective Laird and April are also at this table. All of the other Utrom scientists in this room are in their human costumes, walking around looking like normal humans.

LEONARDO

So, you're saying that the ooze-the mutagen-is fuel for your spaceship?

DR. KOROBIN

No, it actually came from a failed attempt to create fuel for our ship. Our superiors told us not to try, that we wouldn't be able to find the right minerals on this planet, but-we were brash.

LEONARDO

So, the ooze that created us-it's a waste product?

DR. KOROBIN

Oh, very much so. We were on our way to dispose of the canisters when-as your master told you, one of them fell down a sewer. Since then, we have focused our efforts on this transmat device. Fixing our ship is a lost cause.

Leo seems saddened at finding out where the ooze came from.

Detective Laird turns to April.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

This is alot to take in, huh?

APRIL

(nods)

Especially since its the story of the century-and I can't tell anyone.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

True. All of this would be hard for the public to take in-at first.

APRIL

I didn't mean that. I mean, look at them.

April points at Mike and Raph, who are sitting on a couch and roughhousing with one another.

APRIL

They're not just a bunch of freaks-some failed experiment. They way they were talking about this Splinter, the one who raised them. Kinda reminds me of the way my sister and I always spoke of our dad.

(smiles)

They're a family.

Detective Laird nods, looking at April with a caring expression.

APRIL

(snickers)

Hey, just look at the way being on TV screws up _normal_ families. I wouldn't want to be responsible for that.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

You care about them.

APRIL

I guess this is why May Williams got the anchor job. She was always doing these hard-hitting exposes, getting in people's faces, exposing people's secrets. It gets ratings, but I could never do that stuff.

Kevin smiles.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

I'm sorry you hit your head-when you fainted.

APRIL

(smirks)

Well, you did kind of surprise me. I dated an alien.

Kevin and April laugh together.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

That must have been surprising.

Donatello pulls a small microchip out of the device. He is fascinated by it, as it is something that no one on Earth had ever seen. He thumbs through a book full of diagrams for different parts of this ship, written in the Utrom language of symbols.

DONATELLO

I see small markings underneath the carbonic energy modulator.

DR. OBLIGADO

That means that the circuit overloaded while trying to reroute the pixel quotient from the battery vacuum.

DONATELLO

So, you would need a pixel relocation unit. But how do you attach it to the battery vacuum without overloading the seismic chrome filter?

Dr. O takes the microchip out of Don's hands.

DR. OBLIGADO

You would need an adapter that, sadly was completely obliterated when we crashed here.

Don flips through the alien instruction manual for this engine and collects his thoughts from what he sees.

DONATELLO

A seismic carbon plug?

DR. OBLIGADO

(smiles)

You catch on pretty quick. That part alone would take me months to rebuild with the materials you have here-on this planet.

DONATELLO

(nods)

Must be why humans haven't discovered crystallic nano-fusion yet.

Mike and Raph have no clue what Don and Dr. O are talking about. They look at each other with confused expressions.

RAPHAEL

Geez, Donnie. Where'd you learn this stuff?

DONATELLO

Thumbing through this book.

RAPHAEL

You just got that book! And it's written in Utrom!

DONATELLO

(strokes his chin)

That's true. It is a bit puzzling why I picked things up so quickly.

DR. OBLIGADO

(smirks)

That might have something to do with those nanites that you were exposed to when you were here earlier.

DONATELLO

The metal thing on my arm?

DR. OBLIGADO

(nods)

We designed that protection device to have small nanobots that crawled into the subject's brain. It eliminated the need to have a complicated instruction manual. You just _knew_ how to operate it.

DONATELLO

And those nanobots increased my intelligence?

DR. OBLIGADO

It's the only way you could have understood our technology.

Mike and Raph are still confused.

RAPHAEL

Oh, forget it! Is the pizza here yet?

Kevin and April continue talking. Raphael walks towards a window to look outside and overhears their conversation.

APRIL

What was it like on your planet?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

On my planet, in my culture, I was alot like you-I desired to uncover the truth and valued family. When we crashed here, the rest of my team was so obsessed with getting back home that no one explored the idea of trying to live among the humans for the time that we were here. We hid. Became very sheltered.

(nods)

I couldn't live that way. I assisted my brethren with their attempts to get back home, but I couldn't be confined to this single lair.

April turns to look at Raphael.

APRIL

It would be nice if people who are 'different' could just walk around New York, huh? Aliens. Mutants.

Raphael feels a bit emotional at hearing this idea.

RAPHAEL

Always been my dream, lady.

Behind Raphael, four masked ninjas scale ropes, climbing past the window with slick speed. April, Kevin and Mike react with alarm. Raph turns around and gets a glimpse of them.

MICHELANGELO

I don't think that's the pizza guy.

Dr. Glurin, looking at his computer, punches up some security camera footage and sees a group of ninjas gathering on the roof. Leonardo walks over to the computer and sees it too.

LEONARDO

The Foot!

Dr. Glurin taps ferociously on the keys. Dr. Korobin crawls back into his human body, buttoning his shirt and lab coat to complete the disguise.

DR. GLURIN

They've disabled our security systems.

Leonardo draws his katana from his sheath, looking over his shoulder at his brothers. They pull out their weapons as well.

LEONARDO

Not all of them, Doctor.

INT. SAKI SECURITY SYSTEMS BUILDING - MOMENTS LATER

The room that Splinter was once restrained to was empty. The ropes that once bound him were on the floor and a nearby window was open.

EXT. SAKI SECURITY SYSTEMS BUILDING - CONTINUOUS

Armed security guards on their routine patrol of Saki's property did not see Splinter as he ran into the shadows behind them. Splinter climbed a fence and vanished from the area.

EXT. A STREET CORNER. - CONTINUOUS

Splinter ran over to a pay phone and dialed a number.

EXT. /INT. A SUBURBAN HOME - MOMENTS LATER

Tang Shen is having dinner with her husband and children when the phone rings. The family is having a lively discussion. It is obvious that they are a close, happy family.

TANG SHEN

Hello? Konni-chi-waa!

SPLINTER

(on phone)

Shen!

TANG SHEN

Splinter?

SPLINTER

(on phone)

My sons! I need your help!

Shen is startled as she listens to Splinter.

EXT. THE T.C.R.I. BUILDING. - LATER

All four teenage mutant ninja turtles are standing on a rooftop, surrounded by masked members of the Foot Clan as the turtles themselves hold their respective weapons.

RAPHAEL

SAKI!

Oroku Saki is standing on the rooftop of a higher building, in his battle armor, watching the turtles from above. He hears Raphael scream.

RAPHAEL

DO YOU FEAR US?

The brawl begins when the Foot ninjas attack. The turtles display exceptional martial arts prowess as they battle with an equal amount of skill.

Raphael grunts and screams as he slashes at his enemy with his sai. Michelangelo displays a rare (for him) amount of seriousness as he fights with his nunchaku. Leonardo and Donatello twirl their weapons with the precision that had made Master Splinter so proud during their sparring sessions.

Some of the Foot ninjas are thrown off of the rooftop while others simply fall in battle. The plated chests that all turtles have proved to be a protection against the bladed weapons of these ninjas.

Beneath them, police cars and news media surround the building. A 'Channel 6' news van pulls up to the building and May Williams, another reporter for Channel 6, steps out. She looks up and watches the ninja battle going on above.

April O'Neil and Detective Laird run out of the building, towards the news van.

MAY

April! What are you doing here?

APRIL

I was chasing another story.

MAY

Were you the one who called the station? When you saw those 'things' climbing the building?

APRIL

Um, yeah.

MAY

Hmm, well, back off! This one's mine!

APRIL

A story about giant turtles? Isn't this a little 'tabloid' for you?

May is obviously offended by the very suggestion.

MAY

Shows how much you know. THIS is news. An urban legend-or something-come to life.

Kevin looks up at the roof as the battle rages on.

KEVIN

They're fighting for their lives up there.

April turns and sees a construction site next door, where a building is going up. There is a steel frame and a bunch of construction equipment there. April takes one last look at the fight on the roof and runs towards the construction site.

BACK ON THE ROOFTOP, the turtles continue to battle ferociously like true ninja warriors. When the final ninja falls, there is an ominous silence as the turtles wait for what is next.

RAPHAEL

SAKI!

Saki leaps from the building that he has been perched on and lands on the rooftop of the T.C.R.I. building. He rises from a crouched position slowly, his eyes piercing the turtles from behind his mask.

LEONARDO

Your ninja have fallen, Oroku!

SAKI

So, I see-they were good men-my best! I also see-that they have left their mark!

Saki is referring to the scars that the turtles have on their bodies from the battle.

SAKI

But those were just students fighting students!

Saki holds up his spiked fist.

SAKI

Now, you face a MASTER!

MICHELANGELO

Dude, why do you have cheese graters on your arms?

Saki is surprised to hear levity coming from the mouths of these turtles. Leo rolls his eyes as Don nods his head, too tired from the fight to laugh.

MICHELANGELO

Seriously, you look like you should be off fighting Godzilla somewhere!

(laughs)

Godzilla versus-um, The Shredder!

DONATELLO

(laughs)

Shredder! Yeah, that's a good name for this guy! He must be a _cheesy_ fighter!

Mike and Don laugh some more.

MICHELANGELO

Ha ha! Cheese Grater Man!

RAPHAEL

(grunts)

Enough! Me first!

Raphael impulsively charges towards Saki with his sai at the ready. He attacks Saki, who blocks the sai with his arm gauntlets, finally knocking Raph to the rooftop with a double-fisted punch.

DONATELLO

I guess he IS good.

Leonardo tightens his fists around his swords and attacks Saki. Leo's blows are blocked by Saki's spikes as a news helicopter appears overheard, illuminating the rooftop with bright spotlights and filming Leo's fight with the helmet-clad warrior.

There are Foot ninjas who are shooting flaming arrows at the police car while clinging to the building with grappling hooks and wires. May Williams and her cameraman take cover along with a few police officers as a squad car bursts into flames.

INT. CASEY'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - CONTINUOUS

Casey Jones watches the news report, entitled 'Brawl at T.C.R.I.'. He sees the chopper footage of Leonardo fighting Saki from above.

CASEY

(nods)

I'm coming guys!

Casey grabs his hockey mask off of a nearby couch.

EXT. THE T.C.R.I. BUILDING. - CONTINUOUS

ROOFTOP.

After Saki knocks Leonardo away from him with a roundhouse kick, the other turtles attack Saki. They fight him one at a time. Michelangelo is next, attacking ferociously with his spinning nunchaku.

A car pulls up to the T.C.R.I. building, driven by Tang Shen. Splinter is in the passenger's seat. He sees the flaming police car. He sees ninjas dropping down from the building and walking towards the police car and the news van.

SPLINTER

Foot ninja!

Splinter looks up and sees, for the first time in fifteen years, Oroku Saki in complete battle armor. Now, he is battling with Donatello.

SPLINTER

Saki! My sons!

Splinter turns to look at Shen. Shen smiles reassuringly.

SHEN

Go kick his butt!

Splinter gets out of the car and hides in some bushes, trying to figure out how he is going to get up to this rooftop. After Shen drives away, he climbs a fence and lands on the T.C.R.I. grounds with a flip.

Hearing a loud motorcycle startled Splinter and made him edge back towards the bushes. He lunged backwards when a motorcycle, driven by a man in a hockey mask, came screeching onto the lab's grounds. Casey Jones was driving the bike with one hand and holding a baseball bat with another. He popped a wheelie and let out a scream.

CASEY

GOONGALA!

He drove into the crowd of Foot ninjas and started swinging the bat wildly, knocking down a few ninjas before he jumped off the bike himself. The bike landed on its side and slid across the way, tossing sparks as it scraped against the pavement. Casey landed on his feet and started attacking ninjas with his baseball bat.

Casey knocks out three ninjas with his bat and speedy kick-boxing moves. He pulls a golf club out of the golf bag on his back.

CASEY

You guys mind telling me what kind of beef you might have with my little green homeys up there?

Casey now finds himself surrounded by Foot ninjas, all drawing bladed ninja weapons.

CASEY

Oh, ganging up on me, huh? I thought ninja fought with honor.

SPLINTER

That is samurai!

Casey turns around and sees Splinter standing behind him, standing over one of the ninja that Casey had knocked out. Splinter picks up the bow that the fallen ninja had dropped before putting on his quiver of arrows.

SPLINTER

Ninjas are cutthroats and thieves!

CASEY

(nods)

Good to know.

The ninjas attack. Casey and Master Splinter fight skillfully side by side. Splinter fires arrows into the chests of ninja and fights them in close range with the bow itself. He is pleasantly surprised in Casey's skilled fighting.

After knocking out a few ninjas, Casey turns to Splinter.

CASEY

So, you're like-their dad, right?

SPLINTER

Huh?

CASEY

The turtles. Well, adopted, obviously.

SPLINTER

Yes. They are my sons.

CASEY

Sweet. You guys have a good family. Those turtles watch out for each other, you know?

Splinter defends himself against the onslaught of a Foot ninja wielding a katana blade. Casey blocks a ninja's sword with his baseball bat before knocking him out with the golf club.

CASEY

We gotta get you up there somehow.

SPLINTER

There is little time.

CASEY

Start climbing. I'll handle these guys.

Splinter leaps onto the building and starts climbing with the sharp claws that all rats are born with. Casey continues to fight courageously as he backs himself towards his fallen motorcycle.

ROOFTOP.

Oroku Saki has Leonardo hostage, holding a sword to his neck as the other turtles are obviously pained from all of the fighting that they have been doing.

SAKI

Throw your weapons! Off the roof! NOW!

The turtles obey. When Saki kicks Leo's other sword, it does not fall off the roof completely. It merely teeters on the edge. Saki laughs.

SAKI

Compromise! THAT is what makes you weak! Such pathetic, unrefined, vulgar ninja!

Mikey starts to tear up.

MICHELANGELO

We don't care about being ninja. We just want Splinter back! We never wanted any of this!

SAKI

The rat? He is your sensei? The leader of your clan?

RAPHAEL

He's our father!

SAKI

A family.

Saki nods.

SAKI

Then you will share a home-in the afterlife.

Saki tenses the sword around Leo's neck. His brothers gasp.

Suddenly, Saki is shot in the arm with an arrow. He drops the sword. Leo elbows Saki in the chest and gets away.

All eyes turn to look at the rat archer on the rooftop.

LEONARDO

Splinter!

EXT. WOODLAND. - MOMENTS LATER

Casey Jones found himself riding his motorcycle through the woodland that surrounded the T.C.R.I. building. Ninjas fall out of trees at him with their swords at the ready. Casey just keeps driving faster.

CASEY

Goongala!

EXT. THE T.C.R.I. BUILDING. - MOMENTS LATER

SPLINTER

I am here, Oroku Saki! We have unfinished business-that has nothing to do with my sons!

Splinter picks Leonardo's sword off of the edge of the rooftop. He looks over at his turtles, clearly injured from the fight.

SPLINTER

I was wrong to drag my sons into a fifteen-year-old blood feud of which they know nothing.

Splinter places the quiver of arrows on the rooftop beneath him and walks towards his enemy, holding Leo's katana.

SPLINTER

You killed my Master Hamato Yoshi-in cold blood-fifteen years ago, to satisfy your own lust for power-and your jealousy!

Saki pulls the arrow out of his arm. Splinter holds the sword in a relaxed and ready position.

SPLINTER

This is your chance to regain your honor! By dying in battle-like a true warrior!

SAKI

GAH! Filthy rodent!

Saki holds up his bladed fists and attacks. Splinter responds and battles Saki with the same skill (and the same fighting moves) that his Master Yoshi did fifteen years ago.

The fight ended when Splinter executed a spinning maneuver that resulted in Splinter's sword running Saki through the stomach.

Mike cringed as Splinter pulled out his sword. Saki slumped to the rooftop, falling to his knees.

SPLINTER

You are beaten!

Saki groans as he pulls off the face mask that was attached to his helmet.

SAKI

So I am! Your master is avenged! Finish me, rodent!

LEONARDO

We turtles are not dogs without honor!

Splinter holds the sword by its handle and blade.

SPLINTER

Take this blade and regain your honor by committing seppaku!

SAKI

NEVER!

Saki starts to stand up, barely able to do so.

SAKI

If I must spend this evening with my ancestors-and your wretched Master Yoshi-

Saki holds up a small round item in his hands that the turtles immediately recognize as a grenade. He flips the pin off of the top of the grenade. Smoke emerges from the device.

DONATELLO

Grenade!

The turtles start backing away from Saki.

SAKI

-I will tell him that I rid the world of five FREAKS seeking to avenge his worthless-

Suddenly, a large wrecking ball, on the end of a thick chain being swung by a crane hit Saki with a CLUNK! It took him airborne, off the roof. Saki's battle helmet hit the ground when he was gone.

Saki clung to both the wrecking ball AND the grenade, screaming until the grenade detonated, blowing the wrecking ball apart at the climax of its swing. Flaming pieces of the wrecking ball fell to the ground as the turtles scrambled to the edge of the roof.

Looking into the construction site next door, the turtles saw April O'Neil operating the crane.

RAPHAEL

April! All right!

April O'Neil waves at the turtles on the rooftop.

MICHELANGELO

Holy crap! Look who just shredded the Shredder!

Donnie laughs and gives Mikey a high-three.

The turtles finally have time for a tender moment, hugging their returned and beloved father figure Master Splinter.

EXT. CONSTRUCTION SITE - CONTINUOUS

April gets out of the crane and walks over to the T.C.R.I. building. May Williams runs over to her with a microphone in her hand and a cameraman behind her.

MAY

April! Miss O'Neil, do you care to make a statement?

April smiles. May is distracted when Casey Jones suddenly drives by on his motorcycle, dragging one Foot ninja on the ground from his enclosed fist. He drops the ninja to the ground and pulls off his hockey mask.

CASEY

Did I miss all the action?

MAY

Who the hell are you?

Casey does not answer, because he has just made eye contact with April and is smitten. The feeling is mutual and April smiles back.

CASEY

Hi. I'm Casey Jones.

APRIL

April. Are you friends with-

April points at the rooftop.

CASEY

Um, yeah, they're my buddies-

(laughs nervously)

-pals, amigos! I'm kind of like the fifth turtle!

(chuckles)

May Williams rolls her eyes.

MAY

Like we need a fifth turtle.

Somewhere between the T.C.R.I. building and this construction site, a manhole cover moves into place.

FADE OUT:

INT. APRIL'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - EVENING

The turtles are moving a few of their personal belongings into an empty apartment above April's own.

Casey and Raphael have bandages on their hands and are hitting punching bags while the rest of the turtles set up their new 'lair'. Leonardo hangs a poster from a samurai movie as Donatello sets up his computer in the corner. Splinter is sitting in a chair next to Tang Shen as they drink tea.

A television set is on, showing footage of May Williams reporting on the fight at T.C.R.I. Michelangelo puts down the box that he was carrying and pays attention. Donatello walks up behind him.

MAY

Eyewitnesses, including Channel 6's own April O'Neil have reported the same individuals in green costumes that were reported during a different brawl in front of 'Saki Security Systems' three days ago.

Footage of Saki's building, reduced to a pile of rubble.

MAY

Ironically, two hours after this incident, the Saki Security building collapsed onto itself. Officials have yet to find a cause for a sudden weakening of the foundation-

DONATELLO

Mousers.

MAY

-but no one was hurt and no one from the company could be reached for comment.

MICHELANGELO

(nods)

Ninja vanish.

MAY

So, whatever these mysterious assailants might have been-gang members, giant reptiles or aliens-

MICHELANGELO

Ha. Aliens.

MAY

-they have struck hard and faded away-into the night.

Casey and Raphael start sparring with each other, bouncing around each other in the middle of the apartment and throwing punches. Whenever Casey lands a punch, he responds with a shout of jubilation.

CASEY

Awesome!

Casey blocks Raph's punch and lands another.

CASEY

Bodacious!

Another hit to Raph's mid-section a few seconds later.

CASEY

Wickeeeed!

RAPHAEL

Ugh, why do you do that? Every time you land a punch!

CASEY

I don't know. I guess I'm just trying to find the right word to capture the moment.

RAPHAEL

The thrill of the fight?

CASEY

Precisely.

RAPHAEL

(sarcastic)

Yeah, well, let me know when you find the perfect word to describe what you're feeling.

(laughs)

Pansy.

Casey laughs. They start sparring again. Raphael starts jabbing. Casey grabs Raph's arm and flips him to the ground. On the way down, the turtle knocks over a pile of boxes. Casey triumphantly throws his arms in the air.

CASEY

Goongala!

Raphael laughs, realizing that Casey is toying with him.

RAPHAEL

Nice.

Splinter turns to Tang Shen and rolls his eyes.

SPLINTER

(groans)

Kids.

Leonardo starts picking up the contents of one of the boxes that Raphael knocked down, which includes Saki's helmet.

LEONARDO

Will you guys knock it off? April was nice enough to let us stay here. The least we can do is not spar in the apartment.

RAPHAEL

All right, Leo. We can go on the rooftop.

CASEY

(shrugs)

Works for me.

DONATELLO

Mikey and I found an abandoned water tower a few blocks from here. We could always spar in there. It's much cooler on a day like today.

RAPHAEL

Maybe that would have been a better place to live.

LEONARDO

Raph!

RAPHAEL

Come on, Leo! You have to admit that something feels wrong about this. We're giant turtles that grew up in the New York sewers. She's a TV journalist.

LEONARDO

She's earned our trust. She saved our lives.

MICHELANGELO

She shredded the Shredder!

Donatello nods, motioning for Mikey to be quiet.

RAPHAEL

She could put us on the twelve o'clock news tomorrow and then what? I'm not getting dissected by some egghead like Baxter Stockman.

Splinter turns his head and sees April standing in the hallway. He lowers his head with sadness, as April can overhear the turtles' conversation.

LEONARDO

She could have done that yesterday, but she didn't. She protected us.

RAPHAEL

From a broad at the news station that she doesn't like. Maybe she's saving the story for herself. Some lucrative career writing books about freaks in the sewer.

LEONARDO

You don't trust anybody, that's your problem.

RAPHAEL

Not when I smell a rat.

Splinter's ears perk up. Raphael realizes what he said.

RAPHAEL

Sorry, Master.

SPLINTER

Trust your allies, my sons, Ones who have proven their valor.

April walks into the apartment just then, a bit sheepishly.

APRIL

Um, hey, guys. Just wanted to let you know that I found an old air conditioner in the basement. I can hook it up for you if you help me haul it up here.

Leo gives Raphael a look, as if to say "you and your big mouth." Casey steps forward.

CASEY

I can help.

INT. THE HALLWAY - MOMENTS LATER

Casey follows April down the stairs.

CASEY

That was real nice of you to let the guys stay here.

APRIL

(smiles)

Thanks.

CASEY

And-don't let Raph bug you to much. He trusts you. He wouldn't be here if he didn't. He's just been through alot.

APRIL

I know.

CASEY

You're a good friend.

April smiles at him. He smiles back.

APRIL

Hey, you wouldn't happen to be looking for a job, would you?

CASEY

(shrugs)

Less stressful than prize fighting?

April laughs.

INT. SECOND TIME AROUND ANTIQUE STORE - LATER

The door opens and Detective Laird walks in. Casey is standing behind a cash register with a smock on that reads '2nd Time Around'.

CASEY

Hello-and welcome to the 'Second Time Around'.

April walks out of the back room.

APRIL

Kevin!

April runs up and gives Kevin a hug.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

I understand that our mutual friends on the half shell are living here now.

APRIL

Yup. Upstairs. Follow me.

INT. APRIL'S APARTMENT BUILDING. - MOMENTS LATER

Kevin shows the turtles some blueprints for their transmat device.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Thanks to Donatello, my people won't be on this planet half as long as we thought. Donatello managed to work out some design flaws. Our transmat device should be ready in half the time we originally thought.

Leo looks at the blueprints, most of which are written in the Utrom language.

LEONARDO

Donnie figured all this out?

MICHELANGELO

Ha. Our own little Stephen Hawking.

(smiles)

So, when do you guys head back?

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Not for a year at least. We have to find some way to get our hands on the parts we need-and some plutonium.

MICHELANGELO

For the flux capacitor.

Mikey and Donnie laugh. Kevin doesn't get the movie reference.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Well, I don't know the names of any of the parts, but my Utrom brothers have assigned me the task of finding the fuel.

Kevin pulls an envelope out of his jacket and tosses it on the table.

MICHELANGELO

1.21 gigawatts!

DONATELLO

Will you cool it?

Leonardo flips through the contents of this envelope. There are pictures of foreign dignitaries from Asian and Middle Eastern countries.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

Most of the men who possess the fuel that we need are considered hostile by the leaders of your country. Fortunately, I-potentially-have an elite squad of skilled ninjas who can steal the fuel before any eyebrows are raised, making this planet safer in the process.

LEONARDO

You want us to steal the fuel from these dangerous men? Not sure where the honor lies in that.

DETECTIVE LAIRD

True, there is no honor among thieves.

(smiles)

Fortunately, you teenaged mutant turtles are _ninja_ and not samurai.

Leonardo turns to Master Splinter, who is standing nearby.

LEONARDO

What do you think, Master Splinter?

SPLINTER

I think-it is time for my sons to make their own decisions on how to use their talents. Only remember to safeguard yourselves.

MICHELANGELO

Stealth! Hug the shadows.

SPLINTER

Precisely.

MICHELANGELO

I'm in.

LEONARDO

Me too.

RAPHAEL

I knew getting out of the sewer was a good idea.

DONATELLO

Not just the sewer. We're leaving New York!

DETECTIVE LAIRD

I will return tomorrow to brief you on the circumstances of this mission. Your efforts will be forever remembered by the peaceful inhabitants of the Utrom empire!

Leonardo pulls out his sword.

LEONARDO

You know what that means.

(smiles)

24-hours to do some training!

The other turtles pull out their own weapons.

RAPHAEL

You got it, Leo!

CASEY

Can I watch?

RAPHAEL

Naw, you can be our practice dummy!

CASEY

Ha ha.

DANCE MUSIC STARTS. The turtles climb onto the fire escape to head up to the roof. Splinter looks over at Tang Shen.

SPLINTER

It is normal to worry?

TANG SHEN

(nods)

It means you're a father.

EXT. ROOFTOP OF APRIL'S APARTMENT. - CONTINUOUS

Michelangelo places a small 'boombox' on the rooftop as his brothers draw their weapons and start practicing to the beat of the music that they hear. The CLOSING CREDITS start as the turtles spar with each other to the beat of the music.

Mike attaches a microphone to the boombox, pressing a button to change the track.

DONATELLO

Mikey! What are you doing?

Mike smiles, puts a L.L. Cool J.-style Kango hat on his head, along with some golden chains-and starts rapping free-style. THE CREDITS CONTINUE as Mikey raps.

MICHELANGELO

(rapping)

_Yo, it's the green machine! Gonna kick the flow without being seen! Have you ever seen a turtle get down?_

DONATELLO

Yeah!

MICHELANGELO

(rapping)

_Slammin' and jammin' to the New York sound! Yeah! Ninja turtles, let's move! Michelangelo's here with the New Jack groove! Gonna rock and roll the place, with the power of the Ninja Turtle bass!_

LEONARDO

(scolding)

Mikey!

MICHELANGELO

(rapping)

_You know I'm not playin'-that's what this teenage mutant ninja turtle is sayin'!_

Raphael decides to jump in. Mike holds the mic to Raph's mouth for him.

RAPHAEL AND MICHELANGELO

(rapping)

_Ninja! Ninja! Rap! Ninja! Ninja! Rap!_

Mikey pulls the mic away from Raph when he sees that Splinter is standing on the roof.

MICHELANGELO

(rapping)

_Ninja! Ninja! Rat!_

Mike quickly points at Splinter, who is smiling and bobbing his head to the beat of the music.

RAPHAEL AND MICHELANGELO

(rapping)

_Go! Go! Go! Go!_

All four ninja turtles are now dancing to Mikey's new song, jumping up and down with their fists in the air. Mikey tosses his hat and his chains as his brothers join in the song together.

ALL FOUR TURTLES

_Go ninja! Go ninja! Go! Go ninja! Go ninja! Go! Go ninja! Go ninja! Go!_

The chorus is repeated a few times as all four turtles unsheath their weapons and stand back-to-back with their weapons at the ready. It is a visual homage to the very first page of the very first TMNT comic in 1984.

FADE OUT:


End file.
